Thunder's Foretelling
by UnbowedUnbroken
Summary: ...Oddly, though, as he helped her get settled in for the night, he noticed something peculiar. She seemed to have a mark on her hand that mirrored his own. Outside, the thunder rumbled its malevolent ballad..." ZeLink.
1. Prologue: Thunder's Foretelling

**Thunder's Foretelling**

The gold-red glow of another Hylian sunset filtered through the screen of discontented storm clouds and softly made its way through the dusty windows into his house. Sighing wearily, Link set down his pack and moved through the darkened dwelling, lighting candles almost as an afterthought. He mentally checked his to-do list before night. Took care of Epona, check. Looked in on the neighbors to see if they needed anything, check. He smiled to himself. Everything was in order, and all that remained was supper and then bed.

After building up the fire and lighting the house, he filled a plain ceramic pot with water, diced the vegetables and meat, and added some spice before resting the pot over the fire and sitting down in his favorite chair, watching the flames dance their ever graceful dance.

A light tap at his oak door brought him out of his relaxed doze. Senses alert, Link crept over to the door, prepared for anything. Apparently, though, the woman standing outside his door in the storming dark, was not just anything. Lovely blonde hair cascaded down her back, her face an embodiment of exquisite beauty, kind and refined at the same time with her ears tapering off to points. Obviously, a higher-class lady.

"Yes, my Lady?" Link asked, " How may I help you?" A smile came to her face.

" Right now, I'd like to get out of the storm, if that's okay, good sir," she said gently. He felt like smacking himself in the head.

" Of course, of course, come in," he stuttered, trying to cover his lapse as he led her into his home.

Oddly though as he helped her get settled in for the night, he noticed something peculiar. She seemed to have a mark on her hand that mirrored his own.

_I'm just tired and seeing things, _he thought ruefully.

Outside, the thunder rumbled its malevolent ballad and the violent lightning flashed its accompaniment.


	2. Chapter 1: A Surprising Truth

Night had fallen and had colored the autumn forest in inky black. The stars above twinkled merrily and the moon glowed a splendid silver. The leaves of the forest swayed in the chill midnight breeze as did the grass of the nearby pasture.

After much consideration, Link decided it was a beautiful night. Lying restfully on the thatch of his roof, Link considered his guest. It had been a week since she had first made her arrival at his door, and was slightly surprised that she was still there. Every morning, she left to go to town, and each time he had thought she had left for good. However, each day he had come back from the forest to find that she had come back, and usually had supper cooking by the time he got home. He silently laughed.

_I don't even know her name,_ he thought, amused, _yet she's cooking supper for me._

It wasn't that he didn't want the company, and truthfully, he was tired of eating his own cooking. But it was just odd. He felt like he had known her forever, even though he only knew a bare handful of facts about her.

He knew that she was a lady of high station, due to her clothing, and way of speaking. She had told him that she had had some trouble with her family, and had left when she discovered that her father had arranged for her to marry a man twice her age and weight.

" If I do marry," she had told him," I want to marry the man I want to marry." She said before giving him an unreadable look.

She had wandered around Hyrule for a bit, just living off the rupees she had hastily packed. She had arrived in Cordono Village out of chance. The storm had come upon her quicker than she realized, and tried to find refuge. Link's house was the only house still lit, so she came to it.

It seemed valid to Link, but being the intuitive person he was, he doubted at its truth. There were some minor holes in the story, but while they _could_ happen, it was unlikely that it would. The marriage bit, for example. If Link remembered correctly, arranged marriages were not illegal, but were generally not done anymore due to some issues that had arisen from it. While its possible that her father could have arranged a marriage for his daughter, it probably would've been frowned upon by other nobles and probably the king as well, which would likely lessen his influence in court.

_I'm just overanalyzing it_, he thought tiredly. But it's possible that he wasn't, and that possibility could get him killed. However, he concluded that he was tired and decided that speculation could wait.

He slid down to the mossy ground and entered the cheerfully lit house. The first thing he noted was the fragrance of beef stew. The second thing was that the girl sat in front of the fireplace, watching him closely with a mischievous light in her eyes and a small smile on her full lips.

" Well," she said," I wondered how long it would take you." She laughed at his startled look. He smoothed it over quickly. She obviously knew what he had been thinking, so there was no point in lying about it.

" So, who are you, anyway?" he asked, settling in the chair in front of her.

" I think the better question is who are you," she replied, standing up and stirring the stew, "You're an expert swordsman, musician, horseman, and archer. You could argue philosophy with the most educated people in Hyrule, despite little formal education. You can grasp the heart of a situation better than any diplomat who's been working for twenty years. And that's not even the most surprising thing about you! This," she said, grasping Link's hand and taking the leather glove off, exposing the odd birthmark, " is what makes you great."

"It's just a birthmark," he said, trying to sound casual. While he supposed what she said was true, he had never really looked at it that way before. While he had discussed philosophy with her, he didn't realize that he had made that much of an impression. All he did was state his beliefs about things, and explained what it was that caused him to believe that way. She smiled at him as he tried to think his way through what she was saying.

" Link, Link," she said gently, " You have no idea of how great you actually are. You took in a strange woman who appeared in the middle of a stormy night, out of nowhere and whose story didn't match up without a second thought. You help those who can't help themselves, fully aware that you will never be rewarded for your services. But you do it anyway out of your compassion for people and pain for their suffering. That is also what makes you great."

" I've got a few questions," he said.

"Of course, Link," she said.

" My first and most important question is: why haven't you let go of my hand?"

She blushed suddenly and all but threw his hand at him. He grinned at her.

" My second question is: who are you and what is all of this about?"

She sighed quietly, " I suppose it is time to answer that question. But just remember that I haven't changed." She drew her glove off, exposing the mark that he thought he had only imagined. It started to glow a dim gold, and Link noticed that his had started to glow in accompaniment.

" This is the reason I am here," she said solemnly, " I am Princess Zelda, and Hyrule desperately needs you to save it."


	3. Chapter 2: Taking Care of Business

**A/N: Hey everybody. I'm sorry that the chapters are so short. It seems I have a sense of the dramatic, and like to end my chapters at certain points. I'll try to work on that, and make the chapters a little more interesting as the story progresses. You have to remember, this is my first story on here, so I'm allowed to goof up ;). Please R&R, because I'm still uncertain of how I want the story to be done, and I would like to know you guys' opinions. All right, I'll shut up now and let you get to the story. Enjoy.**

**P.S. Italics are used for thoughts or emphasis. Just thought you should know**

_It just doesn't make any sense,_ Link thought irritably as he pulled the brush through Epona's silky auburn coat. The sun was blushing a fiery red as it continued on its departure from the sky. Night was a couple of heartbeats away, and the birds had sung themselves to sleep.

Epona sighed, then quite firmly stepped on her master's foot. Link yelped and stepped back. In his dark thoughts, he hadn't realized how rough he was being in his brushing. He stepped back up to her and stroked her neck in a way of apology. She snorted and turned her back on him.

_Great_, he thought,_ another female mad at me. Just what I need._

He had admitted it was his fault and had tried to apologize to Zelda, but she had stalked away to her room in a huff, and had slammed the door on his face, which had made _him_ upset, since it was his house, and she had no right to be slamming his door. He had left to go to work early, but none of the animals he usually had to deal with, wolves, bears ,as well as others, were active today for some reason, and that had left him with plenty of time to think about her words. He had returned home at the regular time, but had yet to actually enter the house, where she was undoubtedly waiting for him.

As Link led Epona into the stable, and got her settled in for the night, he concluded that the princess was probably not used to people laughing in her face, and it was probably something to avoid in the future. It seemed to offend her mightily, since being a princess, no one had ever had the nerve to do that.

_I'm either really stupid or really brave_, he thought, amused. Of course, an action is only brave if the person survives; if not, they were stupid for trying it. This revelation, for some weird reason, seemed to lighten his mood, and he strolled into the house jovially.

One look at her told him that she was still upset over their last conversation, so he decided a light and bantering tone would ease her past that moment of injury.

"Why, hello, dear," he said cheerfully, setting his bow in its customary place, and undoing his quiver and sword belt, " How has your day been?" One of her eyebrows shot up and her mouth quivered with a smile she would not allow to show.

"Dear?" she asked in mock anger, " Peasant, don't you know who I am?"

" Now, now, I know we've just had our first fight, but there's no need to throw insults around," he replied, setting the quiver and sword right next to his bow, " If you want, you can laugh in my face, and we'll be even."

All anger, real or fake, disappeared abruptly, and Zelda giggled girlishly. Link noticed almost absently that she was absolutely gorgeous when she giggled.

_Whoa, big guy,_ he thought_, she's a princess and you're a forest warden, not to mention that she has a treasure chest full to bursting with secrets, and she guards that treasure chest as fiercely as an Iron Knuckle would._

"I'm sorry about what I did yesterday," she said shyly, " It was a hard to believe story and I sort of sprung it on you. I shouldn't have blown up like that. But," she added slyly, " I guess I could say I had a brand new experience. That's the first time anyone has ever laughed in my face."

" Well, I'm glad I could be of service," he replied unashamedly, " I live to serve, my Lady." She smiled at him amusedly.

" I'm glad to know, my subject," she said regally. They both laughed and settled down to dinner.

Several hours later, the sun had peeked its head over the horizon and the birds greeted it with a harmonious chorus. Zelda hated it. She was most definitely not a morning person, and the days that she spent at Link's house were slowly forcing her to become one. In her rooms at the castle, the walls muffled the sound of the singing, and her thick curtains kept the sun from shining in on her. Link, however, apparently believed that curtains were useless, and never put one up

It irritated her, in a way, that he could wake up so early, and be so cheerful. She usually tried to be gone before he was up, reasoning that as long as she had to be up early, she might as well be better at it than he was. Well, maybe it wasn't that reasonable, but sometimes Zelda was like that. But she was never cheerful about it.

At least, she had gotten him to agree to go with her. He seemed to believe her story, but was a little dubious about his part in it. She had explained about Ganondorf and the Triforce, and their part in the eternal struggle. She told him about the various Heroes of the past, most notably the Hero of Time, who was able to traverse time in his quest to stop Ganondorf.

_He will come to realize his part,_ she thought.

As she tread the streets of Cordono Village, she pondered Link himself. He was a forest warden, which means that he patrolled the forest for predators that could potentially harm travelers. That explained the green tunic, but she felt it had a deeper purpose than camouflage. Every single Hero who had come to Hyrule's rescue wore clothing nearly the exact same. While the camouflage excuse was reasonable, she felt that it _was_ an excuse to justify what she figured was probably a deeper instinct.

Other than that, she knew nearly nothing about him. It seemed that he had had a hard life, and really didn't like to talk about the past much. For some reason, she felt that he had had enough pain and one of her main objectives was to keep him from feeling more ever again. She stopped suddenly while looking over travel rations.

_Well, _she thought_, that was decidedly odd._

She decided that she was still sleepy, and that she was just thinking random things. However, as she finished up making preparations for the journey, she couldn't shake the feeling that that thought was going to be important in the future.

**Well, there you go. This chapter was kind of dull, but necessary to set up things that are going to happen later in the story. I'll try and make the next chapter have a little more action and I'll explain more of the overall plot. By the way, this story is probably going to be updated irregularly, so it might be several days before I update, or I might do a few on the same day. Remember, I'd like some feedback, so please, if you read this, let me know your opinions.**


	4. Chapter 3: Memories in Moonlight

**A/N: Hey everybody. This is going to be my second chapter today, so please read and review. I'd like to know that people are reading this and enjoying it as much as I enjoy writing it for you. It would really mean a lot to me to see some opinions or praise in general. But, please, no spamming. If you've got some constructive criticism, I'd love to hear it, but if you're just going to slam it, don't bother reviewing. Other than that, ROCK ON!!**

**P.S: In this section italics are used to symbolize flashbacks, thoughts, and emphasis.**

_The thunder rumbled on, and people squeezed under umbrellas as the priest concluded his sermon. He then invoked the goddesses to guide the spirit of the deceased to the Sacred Realm and guard over her on her journey. The pallbearers gently lowered the coffin into the earth, and began shoveling the dirt over the simply carved casket._

_One by one, people slowly drifted back home until only Link remained. The boy of seven years stood over the grave, doing his best not to cry, and really not doing a good job of it. The rain drizzled on, leaving Link chilled to the bone. He started to walk away, but then turned around, his face streaming with wetness, whether from rain or tears, he did not know._

" _I can be the man," he whispered, "You won't have to worry about me, Momma."_

Link tossed and turned on his feather mattress, half asleep, but awake enough to know what came next.

_He shivered from hunger as he shook his cup in front of those passing by. Some of them placed rupees in his cup, but most of them looked at him with contempt coloring their expression._

"_Boy," they said, "why don't you get a job?"_

_Little that they knew he did have a job, several in fact, and that even together, he only made enough to barely survive. He was hoping that by picking up begging that he could save enough for a pillow. He was twelve at the time and was not entirely sure he cared whether he survived or not. All he had left was working. No family, no friends. Nothing._

Link muttered in his sleep, still tossing in a restless doze. This was over, he had left it behind. Hadn't he?

_The old swordsman who took him in was a kindly person, with enough wisdom to match every wrinkle. He taught Link the way of the swordsman, and in no time at all, the fourteen year old became a master. But the sword was not the most important thing the kind old master had taught him._

" _Son, remember that I didn't have to take you in, give you clothing, food, shelter. I saw you and took you in out of the kindness of my heart. And, let me tell you something, boy. I have never regretted that. You have become the son I never had."_

_Later, as the man, no, his father, started to slip into the eternal slumber, he had a lucid moment, and had clasped Link's hand._

" _My son," he whispered, " Remember what I have done for you, and my last request to you is to do as I have done. One act of kindness can turn into the best decision you will ever make, as it did with me. Remember…."_

"_I will, my father," the sixteen year old Link promised, holding his father's trembling hand. His father smiled at him._

" _I'm going on ahead of you," he whispered, "I'll see you later, boy." With that, he died. _

_On a day reminiscent of that one nine years ago, the thunder rumbled and the people of Kakariko Village took shelter under their umbrellas. The priest, the same one who had performed the services for his mother, concluded his sermon. He then invoked the goddesses to guide the deceased to the Sacred Realm and guard him on his journey there. The pallbearers gently lowered the coffin into the earth, and began shoveling the dirt over the simply carved casket._

_One by one, the villagers slowly drifted back to their homes until only Link was left. This time, he did not cry. As he turned to leave, he looked back at the grave._

"_I can be the man," he said with a small sad smile, " You won't have to worry about me, Dad."_

With a gasp, Link awoke and sat up in bed. He thought he had put all of this behind him. What was weird ,though, was the fact that it had come to him in a nightmare. He hadn't had nightmares in years.

_I don't have time for moonlit memories_, he thought irritably,_ I need some restful sleep._ Even though he told himself that, he knew he would not find any. Sometimes, sleep was like that. Whenever you needed a lot of it, it decided not to show up.

"Well, that's awfully kind of it," he murmured.

He stood up and sat in the chair by the window, picking up his lyre on the way. At first, he played mournful melodies, but as the night continued on, they gradually became more and more joyful. He could not explain why, but as dawn and the new day approached he felt a growing sense of anticipation. He knew he was leaving with Zelda today, but why he was so excited, he did not know. Maybe just being able to see new places.

_Yeah, that's it,_ he thought, _seeing new places._

He pushed that thought out his mind, and played until the sun made its daily appearance. Setting the lyre back in its case, he stood and took one last look at his room, knowing that this may be the last time he would ever see it.

_No time for memories,_ he thought sadly. Steeling his heart, he went into the living room to meet Princess Zelda and his fate.  
**A/N: Ok, apparantly I lied about more action-packed and interesting. I just felt I needed a chapter to show some of his past and his reasons for the way he acts. I swear, though, the next one will have action of some sort.**


	5. Chapter 4: Calm Before the Cliche

_**A/N: Hey everybody. I was reading through my previous chapters when I had a revelation. I realized I'm not a very good editor lol. If you see something that looks incomplete, could you let me know? Gracias.**_

Zelda was grumpy. While she didn't like to think of herself that way, she reluctantly had to admit that that was what she was. After a miserable day of riding in the cold autumn rain, she was ready for Link to get back with some firewood and make her a fire.

_Rain in autumn_, she thought darkly,_ just another sign of Ganondorf corrupting nature.__Of course he had to infest the most beautiful season with all this dreary mess._

She wished Link would hurry up. If nothing else, he could keep her entertained with his bantering and help keep her mind off her misery. He was actually a pretty amusing guy, except when he made fun of her. She didn't care for that too much, but he seemed to get some sick amusement from it.

" Behold, I return!," Link said grandly as he entered the clearing with an armful of twigs. Zelda rolled her eyes at him.

" Oh, my hero," she said in a monotone, "Now make me a fire."

He grinned at her, "Well dang it all. I was planning on making you a sweater. I guess you'll have to settle for a fire instead, I suppose," he said, placing the twigs in the fire pit and striking the flint.

" Link, just shut up and make my fire," she said grouchily. He looked up from the twigs and lifted an eyebrow at her.

" Who's a grumpy princess?" he asked in a tone dog owners reserve for their pets.

She wanted to glare at him, but he was just too silly to be mad at for long. She burst out laughing and he joined her, their chorus echoing through the forest of the lost Kokiri.

The fire had grown to a cheerful blaze and Zelda eagerly moved closer to it. She stood there for a few minutes, just trying to soak up all the heat she possibly could. She considered falling asleep when Link's voice snapped her out of her doze.

"Uh, Princess," he said, "can you start supper now?" She looked at him and he just grinned that irritating grin at her.

She muttered something under her breath and began gathering the ingredients for the stew.

"I'm sorry, my Lady, I didn't quite catch that," he said, still smiling.

" Why is it that 'my Lady' always sounds so mocking and irreverent whenever you say it?" she asked irritably.

" Because I'm just too delightful for a person to stay mad at for long," he said as he walked over to Epona and started helping her get settled.

Zelda mulled that over in her head and decided he was probably right. Not that she would ever admit it to him, of course.

" I need to get Epona's shoes repaired after we get to wherever we're going," he said, glancing up at her.

"Okay," she said a bit guiltily. She hadn't told him exactly everything about what was going on, mainly because she wasn't entirely sure she knew herself. All she knew was that Ganondorf had returned and had killed all the sages before corrupting their power, and with their power had forged that accursed blade.

She hated to even think about that damned sword. Ganondorf, she had learned, had created that sword by capturing the souls of the sages and binding them to it, giving it power on par with that of the Master Sword.

_The anti-thesis of the Master Sword, as it were, _she thoughtbleakly.

As long as the Master Sword stayed in its resting place, Ganondorf's power was kept in check. However, with the introduction of the new blade, the effects of the Master Sword on the world were canceled out, allowing his power to grow. The only slightly good thing about it was the fact that the power being returned to him was just a trickle compared to the flood that happened when the Hero of Time drew the sword so many hundreds of years ago.

The only way to weaken the Nemesis Sword, as Ganondorf had so wittingly dubbed it, was to cleanse the temple of each sage, and allow their spirits to return to their respective temples.

_Come on, Zelda,_ she thought, stirring the stew absently,_ think of something pleasant for a change._

So, automatically, she thought of Link. While it may seem a little pathetic, he was actually probably the best friend she had ever had. Growing up in the Hyrule Castle, she had had very few actual friends who just wanted to be friends with her. If anyone tried to befriend her, it usually meant that their father or mother was trying to get on better terms with her father, which meant that they received more influence in politics there.

But Link wasn't like that. He actually seemed to care about her as a person, instead of just a way to obtain power. It was actually kind of silly, really, that she had known him for only about two weeks, and she trusted him more than anybody else she knew. He just had a way about him, she supposed.

She just wished she knew more about him. She had nearly told him her life story, but he had never said more than a few words about himself. She was still surprised that the words had poured out in such a torrent. He must've been bored out of his mind, but he had had such a look of interest that she couldn't stop talking. She hadn't been able to talk to anyone about her feelings about things that she probably couldn't have shut up even if she had wanted to, but Goddesses bless him, he had listened to every word she had said.

She glanced over to where he was softly strumming his lyre, his face reposed in the pale moonlight and shadows danced across his face in time with the music. He looked so much at peace. She silently watched his fingers deftly move across the fret with a such a speed and graceful precision that he made it look easy, even though she knew it wasn't.

As she watched him, she had to admit that he was a very handsome man. She supposed that she had known it before, but it had never really sunk in until right now as she watched him play and look truly at peace for the first time since she had known him. Even the night seemed content, with no limbs creaking in the wind or leaves rustling. Sometimes the forest can be quiet, and usually was a sign of bad things. However, this seemed to be more of a peaceful, calm silence rather than a menacing one.

_The calm before the storm_, she thought wryly, remembering the old cliché.

Link concluded with a final, slow strum of the strings and grinned up at her, blond bangs playfully covering one eye. For some reason, when that other sky blue met hers, her heart beat quickened.

" Good, huh?" he asked without a trace of false modesty, still grinning.

" Fair," she said, trying to get her heartbeat under control. _What the hell just happened?_ she thought.

"Dinner ready yet, my dear?" he asked, rising from his seat and carefully setting the lyre back in its hardened leather shell case, using his pet name for her. Normally, when he called her that, all it did was amuse and slightly irritate her. This time, however, she felt her cheeks blush slightly.

" Mine is," she retorted, still flushing a little, " I think yours is going to take another hour or two, since I'm about to dump it on your head."

" Hey, now," he said, raising his hands in surrender, " Not fair, I can't fight back since my supper's on the line."

She stuck her tongue out at him, and the goof just grinned at her.

_Guys_, she thought, half amused and half irritated as she started to ladle stew into her bowl.

"Zelda!," his voice cracked like a whip, "Get down!"

Ordinarily, she probably would've stopped to ask why, but his voice had such a tone of military authority that she immediately hit the ground, just in time to see an arrow flying over the space she had previously occupied. Her blood turned to ice. She looked up to see Link engaged with five moblins that were circled around him.

The first thing she noticed was that Link didn't have a weapon. The second thing was that the five moblins did. Each of them carried a spear with a shaft of about five feet and a foot long point, not to mention bows.

Link closed in on the one closest to him, jumping into the air and bringing his foot around into the side of the pig-creature's face. The moblin squealed and dropped to the ground, blood pouring from the side of its temple. Link picked up the spear and threw it at the next one, sinking it into the moblin's chest with a sickening thud. Link rolled forward, just barely dodging a stab aimed at him. He spun around, slipped a knife from his sleeve and flicked it at the creature. The knife sank into its arm, and it howled in pain, lifting its head up toward the night sky. Link crossed the space and slammed his fist into the moblin's throat. It went down with a bloody gurgle.

The other two were more cautious than their fellows were apparently. They started moving in opposite directions, trying to get out of his line of sight so one could attack from behind while the other went head on with him.

It probably would've worked had Zelda not intervened. Quickly, she drew in power from her Triforce and hurled a fireball at the one behind Link, dropping it with a pained squeal. It would not kill it, but at least it would buy Link a little time.

He didn't waste it. He quickly leapt into the air and kicked the moblin straight in the face, crushing its skull with one mighty kick. He then quickly picked up the fallen creature's spear and stuck it in the other one's chest.

All in all, the fight had taken about a minute.

Link gravely stalked back over to where Zelda lay and as he helped Zelda rise from the ground, she noticed that all traces of humor had vanished from his sky blue eyes and only deadly seriousness remained.

" Are you okay?" Link asked quietly, his head lifted above where she could see, searching the foliage for more enemies. She cupped his chin and drew his face down where she could see it. As she suspected, a bloody scratch from the fighting. She hadn't even seen a moblin hit him.

" Link.." she began, her hand moving up to touch his cheek gently.

"I'm fine," he said shortly, taking her hand off his face, " Let's eat supper before it gets cold."

As the night drew on, Link quietly cleaned the dishes and sank into his bedroll. He seemed to fall asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow. It wasn't as easy for Zelda though. As the moon continued her journey across the sky, her mind kept going back to the fight. Well, slaughter was probably the better word. She hadn't expected Link to be quite that savage as a fighter.

As she thought more on the subject, she came to the conclusion that having her see him act like that had somehow hurt him deep down. She intuitively realized that he hated fighting, and that it always hurt him to see the creatures he had killed.

_I couldn't protect him from pain like I promised I would_, she thought suddenly, horrified. At that thought, she started crying and as the night continued, eventually cried herself to sleep.

**Okay, longest chapter yet. (Starts dancing badly). Sorry, about that. Obviously, this was a really important chapter. It introduced the plot that the rest of the story is going to follow, as well as giving some insight into Link and Zelda's relationship. Thank you to those who have read and remember, drop a review sometime, please. Oh, and eat at Joe's Diner. That is all. Night, everybody**


	6. Chapter 5: Rubicon

**Disclaimer- I haven't done this yet, so I figured I probably should. I do not own Legend of Zelda, and I'm fairly certain that I never will. Sorry, folks.**

The next morning, Link was in a much better mood. However, the princess wasn't too happy with him, and refused to speak to him. All he did was try and give her a pet to help keep her company. How should he know that she was afraid of frogs? He thought it had been a quiet little creature and quite tame as well.

He grinned, the mirth still bubbling up inside him. He had just wanted to apologize for being rude to her after the fight. Perhaps, placing the little creature on the ground next to her face and shaking her awake wasn't the best way to do things. Oh, well. At least he gave her a little exercise chasing after him with a frying pan.

The princess was riding Epona a little ways in front of him, and as if him thinking about it had caught her attention, she turned her head to look at him, and stuck her tongue out at him.

" You look so cute when you're mad," he called out to her, his tone deviously innocent. For some reason, her face turned red after he said that.

" You listen here, Mister," she said, launching into a tirade. But, of course, he didn't. Link was just like that sometimes. It didn't really bother him, though. It seemed to keep her entertained, and since Link was such a nice guy, he let her tear into him like a dog tears into a scrap of meat. It didn't mean he had to listen to it, though.

He knew that most of it she didn't mean. It seemed more of something to keep him quiet so she could get over her embarrassment. Besides, she really was cute when she was mad. Sometimes, you can't help but notice these things.

As they entered a clearing, he noticed a huge stone building that was overgrown with vines and other plants. situated in front of the forest line. He ran up to Epona and walked with her as they continued toward the structure.

" Is this the Forest Temple?" he asked Zelda, who had finally grown quiet. She looked down at him, and smiled a tiny smile. Why she did, he did not know. Maybe he had something in his teeth. He'd have to check later.

"Yep," she said, looking back towards the structure, a distant look clouding over her sapphire eyes, " Help me down, please, Link."

He gently took her by the waist and set her on her feet on the ground. For some reason, though, their eyes met, and he paralyzed on the spot, unable, or unwilling to move, his arm still circled around her waist.

" Link," she said gently, " We need to start moving." He stood there for a minute before reason elbow dropped his body into action. He snatched his arm away like it burned.

"Sorry," he said hastily. She gave him a look that he didn't recognize, which seemed to happen a lot. Maybe it was just a female thing he didn't know about. Not that he knew much, considering he had spent most of his life just trying to survive, and really hadn't had much female company. He didn't mind of course.

"It's okay, Link," she said, with a tone to match the look, " Let's go." As they walked on, she turned her head every few steps to look at him.

_What the hell is that about? _he wondered to himself,_ Oh, well. I'll ponder it later._

They arrived at the entrance to the Forest Temple, and Zelda looked at Link uneasily.

" Are you ready?" she asked him quietly. He stepped forward and grasped the door handle to the profaned temple. He looked back at her, and smiled sadly at her.

"It doesn't matter whether I'm ready or not. There's no turning back for us now," he said, checking his sword and shield, "We are committed now." That seemed to have a double meaning to Zelda, because she got a look of surprise on her face. What it would be, he again had no idea.

"Let's go," he said. He opened the door and they entered, not knowing how true his words really were.

**Okay, this was a really short chapter. But I really wanted the Forest Temple to have its own chapter, which I should have done later today, or perhaps tomorrow. Remember, please R&R. Thanks for reading, everybody.**


	7. Chapter 6: Of Peace and War

**A/N: Hey everybody. I just wanted to leave a quick note on how fighting is going to work in this particular story. If anybody has ever read the ****Rurouni Kenshin**** manga or watched the anime, then you'll have an idea of what I'm talking about. When Link starts fighting, he starts at a normal fighting capacity, which by itself is pretty impressive. As Link starts to get angrier or more desperate while fighting, he becomes faster, stronger, and just generally a whole lot better. However, that's where the similarities between him and Kenshin end. During the fight, Link unconsciously draws on the power of the Triforce of Courage, which can be tiring and fatal if used for too long, say, for thirty minutes straight. And this is where Zelda comes in. While she can use her power for combat, usually its faster and more effective to just let Link handle it, so she usually uses it to heal and rest Link, allowing him to use his Triforce longer. Wow, sorry about the novel length A/N, but it's just something that needed to be said. Now, I'll shut up and let you read. Enjoy. Oh and R&R, please.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Legend of Zelda or Rurouni Kenshin. Even though I want to.**

The interior of the first room of the temple was a long hallway with a simple square room that a large staircase in the middle and numerous doors out on all sides. However, they only caught a quick glimpse of it, because as soon as the pair had taken their first step into the corrupted structure, the entrance had slammed shut and every torch in the building had gone out.

" Well, thank Din that wasn't too creepy or anything," Link said dryly, " You okay, Zel?"

He looked over to where he thought she was, and was startled to find that she had a small fireball balanced over the palm over her hand. Even though the fireball didn't illuminate that much, he could tell her face was amused.

"Zel, huh?" she said, brushing past him, her shoes echoing on the tiled floor, " Two weeks and you're giving me another pet name? I'm touched."

"Well, I guess you could say that," he replied, following close behind her, " Or you could say I'm lazy and tired of speaking two syllables when I could only say one. So, Zel it is." he concluded.

She stopped a minute and he walked right into her. She held her hand up, meaning for him to stop.

"Look up," she said quietly, "Skulltula."

"What's a Skulltula?" he asked, gradually lifting his head, " I hope it's not some sort of spider, because I'm deathly afraid of…." He saw it. He let out a yell, definitely a manly war-cry instead of a girly scream, and retreated, definitely not running away, back to the entrance.

" So much for courage," Zelda muttered, incinerating the Skulltula with a quick fireball, " Come on, big guy, the spider's gone now." Link walked back to her, feeling a rueful grin spreading over his face.

" Sorry about that," he said, embarrassed, " I had a bad experience with a spider once. Uh, would it be okay if you handle the spiders, and I handle the rest?"

She sighed and reached up to pat his cheek mischievously, " We'll see, I may have something better to do. Now, come on, we need to get some light, or we'll never find our way out." She started walking toward the room, and Link followed.

"You're joking, right?" he asked, "Please?"

An hour later, they still had not gotten the torches lit. They had tried everything, from a simple flint to multiple spells to Link playing "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" on his lyre, reasoning that the song got hundreds of peoples to light their lighters and that maybe the torches had a love for power ballads.**(A/N: Sorry about that, I couldn't resist. Oh, by the way, this temple is somewhat based on the one in OoT, and if you've played it, you should know how they're going to light the torches.)**

Finally, they concluded that they would have to do something in the dungeon to make the torches flare anew.

After several minutes of discussion, they ultimately decided to go into the door to the west. With Zelda leading the way with her little fireball, they reached the door and slipped inside. This room, in contrast to the other, was rather cheerily lit, so Zelda dispersed the fireball, and they both took in the surroundings.

It was a small, square room with little decoration and a simple, if rather large, treasure chest in the precise middle. There was a door facing them from the wall opposite them. The room seemed fairly innocuous, but something about it made Link wary.

" Wait here," he told Zelda, unsheathing his sword and taking his shield on his arm. He crept forward, senses on alert, ears straining for any sound.

Suddenly, he felt an uneasy feeling and rolled out of the way, just missing a sword thrust to the area he had just occupied. He spun around to face his opponent, and fear grabbed his heart in a death grip.

His adoptive father had told him about the Stalfos, and had told him how he had barely survived a fight with one. It had left him with a permanent limp and horrifying nightmares for the rest of his life. The strategy to beating the Stalfos, he had told Link, was to keep it on the defensive and not let it get an attack in.

Link closed in with the Stalfos quickly, using his smaller stature and speed to his advantage. He threw a couple of lightning thrusts at the Stalfos, before aiming an attack at its bony neck. The Stalfos easily blocked those attacks, but left an opening in its defense. Link quickly took the hilt in both hands and stabbed the Stalfos in its ribcage before smashing through it and chopping its head off at the neck. The Stalfos groaned in undead agony, then collapsed in a pile of dust.

Link frowned at the dust pile for a minute, musing. That had been way too easy. He had expected the fight to last for a fairly long time.

" It must have been an inexperienced one," he finally confided in Zelda as she walked toward him. For some reason, her expression was one of awe and shock.

"What?" he asked as she stopped in front of him.

"That was no inexperienced warrior," she whispered, " That was one of their Warlords, the strongest of the fighters." Link shrugged, unimpressed.

" He must've fooled a few of them to get so exalted," he said, heading for the chest.

" Link, it wasn't him, it was you!" she exclaimed, running to catch up, " It was over in less than fifteen seconds. Ordinarily, it takes a squad of knights over several minutes to finish off one of them." "It must be your Triforce," she concluded.

" If you say so, Zel," he said, looking over the chest for traps. He decided it was safe and opened the chest to reveal an….object. That was about the only thing he could describe it as.

"Hey, Zel, do you know what this is?" he asked her, lifting it up and showing it to her.

" That looks like a Hookshot," she said excitably, " The Hero of Time used one almost like this."

"Do you know how it works?" he said, looking the thing over for instructions.

" Yeah, there's a button that causes the hook to shoot forward, and when it latches onto something, it pulls the person with it. Really good for climbing upwards or crossing a chasm or other things of that nature."

" I'm going to just take a guess and assume that we'll probably have to use it in the next room," Link said thoughtfully, looking at the door.

"Link," she said, "Are you alright?" He sighed and turned his head to face her. For some reason, her expression was extremely gentle. He just smiled at her, slight sorrow marring his expression.

"I'm just a man of peace fighting a war in order to keep his peace," he answered her quietly, " We need to get going."

Of course, his assumption about the room had proven to be correct. They were on a ledge facing a large, dark chasm and another ledge on the other side.

" How are we both supposed to cross it?" he asked. She just sighed then pressed closer to him, arms wrapping around his neck.

"Oh, right," he said, face burning with embarrassment.

" Just, hurry up, Link. We can hug later." she said impatiently.

" I might just have to take you up on that offer," he said grinning, not noticing her face was suddenly flaming. "Okay, here goes nothing."

He aimed at the target and pressed the button. It seemed to pull them forward almost immediately after connecting. Eyes shut, Zelda tightly clung to Link as they crossed the dark maw of a hole in the ground.

" Well, that was invigorating," Link said lightly. He looked at Zelda, who still was clinging to Link for all she was worth.

"Um, Princess, it's okay, you can let go now." he said, half regretfully. It was actually quite pleasant, but he knew this was not the time or place for that sort of thing.

" Sorry," she said, stepping away, "I'm just slightly afraid of heights." She said it as if it was one of her most closely guarded secrets.

" Well, I won't tell, if you don't tell anyone of my fear of spiders." he said, smiling at her. Her returning smile was like the sun rising over the horizon. Once again, he couldn't help but notice that she was simply gorgeous.

" I think I can handle that," she said, " Come on, let's hurry up and cleanse this goddess forsaken place."

The next room was suspiciously empty, and the door slammed shut after them before bars slid across it, blocking their way out.

"Crap," Link and Zelda murmured in unison. Link took out his bow, and nocked an arrow, keeping the string pulled half way. Ghostly laughter suddenly erupted from the room, and a Poe appeared in the center of the room. This Poe seemed different from the others he had seen, though. She, or at least he assumed it was a she, due to the feminine appearance of the creature, cackled and sent a blue fireball sailing toward them.

Without thinking, Link sent an arrow through the very center of the fireball, dispersing it, and watched as it sank into the Poe. She screamed and disappeared.

" She's not gone yet." he said, drawing his sword.

For some reason, his senses were unusually alert, and he assaulted the Poe before it had the chance to shoot another fireball. It disappeared and they repeated the process until the Poe dropped its lantern and fell to the floor, vanquished. The blue fire floated above the remains of the lantern and headed through a wall.

They looked at each other and shrugged before heading back to the main room. As they had expected, one of the torches had been lit with the bright blue fire.

"Ugh," Link said, "This is going to take a while."

" We might as well get started," Zelda said, heading for the east door. Link sighed, then followed.

As luck would have it, the next Poe was in that very room waiting for them. Link unsheathed his sword and pounced on it before it had the chance to realize they were there. He used an attack sequence that his father had taught him. Horizontal, vertical, feint, vertical, horizontal, feint, vertical, vertical, thrust. The entire purpose was to keep the enemy guessing. If successful, it would only have to be used once. Of course, master swordsman could usually read the movements before they happened, but for amateurs, it was more than enough.

Link once more felt that particular sense of letdown when he killed the Poe. He knew he should've felt overjoyed that the combat was fairly easy, but some place deep inside his subconscious, he just felt the need for a challenge. Which was really, really odd, considering he was a pacifist.

_Get with it!_ he thought irritably,_ I can think about this when I'm not fighting for my life._

They went through the next door to find no visible threat, but, of course, he knew that that wasn't the case. He took two steps forward, and was promptly rewarded with the sight of two Stalfos jumping to the floor. Sometimes he wished he was wrong about things, just for the sake of variety, if nothing else.

He decided he wanted to see how well his new toy would work as a weapon and pulled out the Hookshot. He focused on the Stalfos closest to him, took aim, and fired it. It was almost unreal how effective it was. The hook crashed through the skull and the chain pulled the hook back with the skull still attached to it, which he quickly crushed with his booted foot. He repeated the process with the other one, and the door that had been previously closed on the other side of the room opened when the creature fell.

"Damn," he said quietly as the bodies turned to dust. He still felt sorrow that he had to kill those Stalfos, but it wasn't nearly as bad as it was with the moblins, mainly because the Stalfos were already dead when he destroyed them. He sighed. He had the feeling that he was going to be doing this for a long time, and that he would still feel like this even then.

He noticed the princess was looking at him with compassionate eyes. For some reason, he took comfort in her being there with him. He realized that she was probably the best friend that he had ever had, besides his adoptive father and the mother he barely remembered. He had never had friends his own age, mainly because at the time he was supposed to be making friends, he had been working to support himself, and later, him and his father. The fact that she was his best friend was an idea that bore dwelling on. Later, though.

" I'm fine," he said, " Let's go."

The next room contained four portraits of the same Poe. That was it, except for the word _NEWS_ inscribed in the floor. He looked at the floor, then at the portraits, then back at the floor. An idea bulb flashed above his head.

"I've got an idea," he said to Zelda, who was presently examining the carving, "Stand back in the door way, though. Who knows what could happen if I'm wrong." She nodded and heeded his request. Link took out his bow and shot an arrow at the one on the north side of the room. The arrow pierced it, and the portrait fell apart, falling to the ground. Now positive that his idea was correct, Link shot the arrows at the paintings in the order described on the ground.

Once the last one had fallen, the remains of the portraits shuddered and flew in the air toward the center of the room. They came together, twirling around each other until the third Poe was revealed. Link fell upon it with his sword. He stuck with his attack pattern, and after several seconds of hasty blocking from the Poe, he killed it with a quick thrust to its ghostly heart.

It shrieked and dropped its lantern, just like its sisters had, before vanishing in the air. The green flame floated above the lantern, then headed toward its rightful place in the main room. Link was about to follow it, but was stopped by Zelda's voice.

"Link." He turned around to face her. He noticed her face looked worried, but also determined.

"Yes?" he asked, wondering what she could be worried about.

" You need to stop and rest for a little while," she declared, crossing over to him. For some reason, he felt that that was not what she was going to say.

" I feel fine," he protested, trying to get around her. She stopped him with a tender touch to his cheek.

"Link," she said gently, " Your knees are trembling uncontrollably and you look like you're about to pass out." He looked down at his knees, and he realized she was right.

"Well, I'll be darned. I guess they are. But I'm fine. I can go on."

It was about that time that his knees decided that they were tired of carrying him around, and didn't want to support him anymore. He fell on his butt with a hearty "ow" and glared at them. They didn't seemed to be all that concerned about it, he noticed irritably.

He had to conclude that she was right, because he was starting to suspect his body was plotting a conspiracy against him, and when it gets that bad, you're either extremely tired, or crazy. He fervently hoped it was the first one. She arched an eyebrow at him, but said nothing.

" Alright, you win," he grumped. He wasn't the sort of person who liked to be taken care of, mainly because he had always supported himself, and believed that he shouldn't need anybody else's help.

She smiled at him, that smile that always lit her face up and magnified her already stunning beauty one hundredfold.

" You know something, Zel?" he asked, slurring his words from tiredness, " Has anybody ever told you that you are an awfully lovely woman?"

He couldn't see her face, because the back of his eyelids rather rudely decided to occupy the space where she had been.

_Stupid eyelids_, he thought before fading into sleep.

Zelda sat across from Link on the other wall, watching him sleep. He had taken too much power from the Triforce, she had finally decided after a while. She would have to train him not take too much at one time. Still, watching him fight those creatures had been absolutely amazing. She had seen some swordsman before, but when they fought, it was usually segmented moves and attacks. Link, however, flowed. She suspected that was more of him than the Triforce, but it had almost certainly helped in that.

Her mind automatically went to his babbling before he passed out from exhaustion. She was fairly sure she was still blushing from that. Not that he had said it, but that he believed she was. No one had ever called her lovely, mainly because they believed that she would be angry if they did. If it had been from anybody else, she probably would've been. But since it was from Link….

Link yawned, then sat up, snapping her thoughts to the present. He looked much better, but his eyes were still slightly strained.

"What happened?" he asked quietly in a strong voice that seemed to echo in the very depths of her soul. He stood up and offered her his hand. She gladly accepted and he hauled her to her feet. She could have easily gotten up by herself, but she just wanted to touch Link's hand, for whatever reason.

" You drew in too much of the Triforce," she said, disengaging their hands, not really wanting to. " You need to work on controlling your emotions while fighting. It responds to how you're feeling. If you feel anger or desparation when fighting, or even sadness, it will assume you're losing and grant you power, which can be very tiring on the body. You need to control your sadness at killing, at least until after the fight." He nodded, then grinned at her.

"What?" she asked suspiciously.

"Nothing," he answered innocently, "Sometimes I just like smiling at pretty girls."

"You're impossible," she said, a grin coming to her face unbidden.

" I know," he replied unabashedly, "Isn't it delightful?" His face turned serious after that.

" I think that's the last one," he said, "Let's go back to that main room and see what changed."

The first thing they noticed was that the door at the top of the staircase had unlocked. The second was that there was a tiny girl standing near the center of the room, looking scared and clinging to a teddy bear. She couldn't have been more than six.

" Little girl," Link called to her. She jumped and turned around to face them, her soft brown eyes terrified.

" Who are you?" she asked, " Do you know where my mommy is?"

"I'm sorry, I don't," he replied, "What happened?"

" We were having a picnic in the woods when these monsters attacked us," she answered, her face twisted with grief, " She told me to run, and I did. I got lost trying to find her, when I found this place. It seemed like a good place to wait for her."

"When was this?" he asked gently. She sniffled.

"Two days."

He traded looks with Zelda. They both knew that this child's mother was dead. They also knew that neither one of them would have any peace, knowing that they had left this girl behind by herself.

"What's your name, little girl?" he asked.

"Leigh," the little girl answered

" So, Leigh, would you like to come with us when we leave?" Link asked, kneeling to the floor so that their faces were level, "You could come with us and we'll look for your mommy. And you'll be able to eat Zelda's good cooking and you can ride my horse. Would you like that?"

A light seemed to shine from her face and her eyes sparkled.

" Really?" she asked enthusiastically.

" You bet," Link answered, " So is that a yes?" She answered by running into his arms, laughing and smiling. He stood up, picking her up with him. Zelda noticed that he now had a huge smile on his face, and Leigh's was only slightly smaller. The girl seemed to notice Zelda for the first time and whispered something in Link's ear.

" I agree," he said, " She is pretty." He set her down in front of Zelda. " Now, Leigh, I want you to stay here with Zelda, while I finish a little business here. Then, we'll leave and go look for your mommy, okay?"

"Okay," she agreed.

"Link," Zelda began worriedly. He winked at her.

"Don't worry," he said, "I'll be fine."

That didn't help very much. Each step he took away from her made her stomach clench in fear. Zelda sat down on one of the stone benches and tried to get her fear under control. She felt, more than saw, a tiny hand wiggle its way into hers, and felt much better. She looked at the little girl, and noticed the fear on her face that had to be etched onto Zelda's face as well. She enfolded the child in a hug.

"He'll be fine," she told her gently.

Zelda hoped she wasn't lying.

As soon as the door banged shut, Link accessed the surroundings. The boss's chamber was a circular room with what looked like an altar in the center. The only decorations were the stained glass windows that depicted the three goddesses. One of them was broken, though, and let sunlight fall on one spot.

"Hey, kid," a voice spoke from the darkness, " Surprise."

An energy bolt flew toward him, and hit it with his sword, purely out of reflex. It slammed into a darkened corner.

"Not bad, kid," the voice said again. As it spoke, the shadows boiled over and coalesced into a being of shadow with the features of a man Link did not know.

" Who are you?" Link asked calmly. The creature laughed.

" The name's Ganon," it said, " Phantom Ganon."

Instead of replying back, Link appeared in front of the Phantom in a flash. He started with the standard sequence and landed it. It howled in pain, falling into the shadows.

"Ouch, dammit, kid," the being snarled, " It didn't harm me in the slightest, but it still hurts like hell."

Link quickly decided that standard tactics wouldn't work, since it seemed that he couldn't be harmed with steel alone. His eyes fell on the ray of sunlight, and an idea came to him.

"Let's try that again," Phantom Ganon said. Another energy blast was hurled at him. This time, however, Link had deduced his approximate location and slammed the energy blast back at it. It connected, and the being appeared in a flash of light. Link then pulled out his Hookshot and shot it at the phantom. It pulled Phantom Ganon toward him and into the light, which made it fully solid, meaning that he could hurt with a solid weapon.

Link repeated this process a few more times before the being howled with anger.

"You will regret this, arrogant child," it raged, "You shall fall at the hands of my master!"

Link didn't bother to reply as he delivered the final blow. The shadows sighed as their master fell, and quietly faded until no trace of them remained.

He stood quietly for awhile, then walked over to the altar and knelt, bowing his head.

_Sage of the sentinel forest_, he prayed,_ come and reclaim your place and your temple._

"_Arise, Link_," a feminine voice whispered. He did.

"_Thou hadst done well to free me,_" she continued, "_ And thou shall doubtlessly do well in freeing my brethren. But be aware, for this day, Ganondorf has truly realized thou art his true enemy. O, man of peace and war, thy peril will grow larger as the days march on. Listen to Zelda. She is the embodiment of wisdom and shall aid thee as such. And, now, gentle Link, I must depart. May happiness dwell in thy heart all of your days. Farewell."_

When he raised his head, he noticed that any absence of evil had vanished, even down to the feeling of the place. Because of his war, it became a place of peace. Link smiled. Nothing could suit him better.

So, still smiling, he quietly left the altar room and went down to join his new family.

**Yes! The longest chapter yet, a whopping fifteen pages. As you probably noticed, Link has started to think of Zelda and Leigh as his family. This is going to be**_** extremely **_**important later on in the story, so keep it in mind during the chapters. I'm sorry that the chapter was so boring, but it set up certain principles that will be used later on. I promise that the other temples won't be nearly as drawn out. So, remember, R&R, and that's all folks.**


	8. Chapter 7: Awakening

_**A/N: Hey everybody, thanks for all the reviews. It means a lot to me that you would take time and say a kind word about it. If you have any questions, please let me know. I would be glad to answer questions unless the answer has to do with something in the plot I want to keep secret. Sorry, but I like springing surprises on you. Enjoy.**_

_**P.S. Italics are used for dreams, flashbacks, and thoughts in this chapter.**_

* * *

_She was on a balcony at the castle. The silvery moon glowed serenely in the clear autumn sky. The stars twinkled merrily, not having a care in the world. The gardens that the balcony overlooked were covered in a veil of fine mist and peaceful silence reigned._

_Zelda didn't seem to feel that peace. The view had always left her with a sense of serenity, but for some reason, she couldn't seem to find contentment in it anymore. A sudden breeze chilled her to the bone, and she hugged herself, half for the warmth, and half for the comfort._

"_Cool night, isn't it," a man's deep voice said behind her. She didn't need to turn around to know the owner of that voice._

"_It is, indeed," she said as Link joined her to lean on the rail. He wasn't dressed in the green tunic and white leggings he usually wore, or the pointed green hat. He was dressed in a simple, if elegant, white button-down shirt and baggy pants of khaki. _

"_Why aren't you with everybody?" he said, his voice slightly amused, "This is held in your honor, after all." She looked down at her elaborate gown of lavender before answering._

"_I'm not really much for parties," she sighed, "It's mainly an excuse for my father to show me off to his nobles, and to try and find a husband for me."_

_Link muttered something under his breath in a dark tone, then suddenly smiled at her._

"_Would you care to dance, my dear?" he said, holding out his hand and using his pet name for her, " A girl should have some fun at her party, and you should get some laughs at watching me trip over my own feet." She smiled at him warmly, her heart speeding up slightly._

" _I would love to," she said, taking his hand and wrapping the other around his neck. The music was barely audible from where they were, but it was enough to get a rhythm going. _

_What seemed like for hours they danced, never taking their eyes off each other's. The dance was nothing grand, just some simple steps and a few twirls, but the physical contact that she had craved that was the best thing about it. Only Link and Zelda seemed to exist in the world as the night continued._

" _You know something?" Zelda asked after they had finished, " You're not that bad of a dancer. We should do this again sometime." He grinned at her, causing her heart to, once again, hammer in her chest. _

" _Anytime, my dear," he replied, "You know that I'm at your immediate disposal."_

" _Do you really mean that?" she asked quietly._

" _Mean what, exactly, my dear," he asked, looking at her with a confused expression._

"_That. The 'my dears'," she asked, not knowing what she wanted the answer to be. He stood still, then walked to her and took her in his arms. She looked up at him, somewhat shocked._

" _Why don't we find out?" he murmured, lowering his face to hers. Her heart started racing. She lifted her face and he lowered his lips, nearly touching hers._

* * *

Of course, that was when Zelda woke up. She sat up, noticing that her heart was still racing. She had no idea what had woken her up, but she wasn't sure whether she was glad she had woken up or not. That image of Link and her on that balcony seemed burned into her mind, a memory that wouldn't fade with the passage of time.

She stood up and stretched, yawning as she did. She figured that she wouldn't be able to go to sleep for awhile, so she decided not to even bother to try. She quietly crept next to the fire, where Leigh was sleeping peacefully with her teddy clutched to her heart.

Zelda smiled sadly and brushed a lock of hair from Leigh's cheek. They had never found Leigh's mother, and they decided that she was either dead, or had abandoned the little girl. Leigh had cried at first, but after a while, she had gotten over her grief and acted like a normal little girl. Zelda suspected that Link had been one of the reasons that she had gotten over it so fast. Link had been an orphan too, and knew what she was going through.

They had quickly decided that Epona by herself was not going to be able to carry the equipment and people. So, in one of the villages they had searched for Leigh's mother, they had bought another horse, a gelding by the name of Wind. It was unfortunate that he wasn't named that for his speed, but Zelda and Leigh persevered, reasoning that it was better than walking the entire way.

Sometimes Leigh rode with Link, others with Zelda. Leigh had told them that she had never known her father, so it wasn't really unexpected when she began calling Link "Daddy". Or at least it wasn't to Zelda. Link had seemed fairly stunned by it, but apparently took a liking to the name, because he never corrected her.

He took his job seriously, though. Every night, before they went to sleep, he would hold her in his lap and tell her a bedtime story, usually some ancient legend about the Hero of Time, or about the creation. Leigh seemed to cherish time with her "Daddy', so she usually stayed with him.

Zelda was not neglected, though. Whenever Leigh felt that need for other female company, she asked to ride with Zelda. While Leigh never called her "Mommy", Zelda felt that that was what she was to this little girl now. For some reason, Leigh's presence fulfilled a maternal instinct she never knew she had. She combed and brushed Leigh's hair every morning, and told her stories, such as knights in shining armor, that Zelda doubted Link knew. Sometimes girls just like to hear romance stories.

At least she had a partner in crime now. Link had always gotten the best of her when it came to pranks, but now she had help. Leigh seemed to prefer Link, but never helped him in his pranks. In fact, whenever he told Leigh of his various devious plans, she had told Zelda, who then used the prank against Link. He was never amused by that, and always spent the rest of the evenings grouchy and irritable. It was always worth it, though.

That didn't mean everything was smooth sailing though. Zelda wryly remembered a conversation with Leigh:

_It was a warm day for autumn and the knee-high grass of the Hyrule Field seemed almost lively. Link was farther up ahead, keeping a lookout for enemies. Leigh was riding in front of Zelda's saddle and was wrapped in her arms. Zelda had no idea what caused Leigh to ask her question._

"_Zellie?" she murmured sleepily, snuggling closer, using her name for Zelda._

"_Yes, dear?" she asked, absently watching Link ahead of them._

"_Are you and Daddy married?" the little girl asked, turning around to look at Zelda. Alarmed, Zelda looked to see if Link had heard, but if he had, he gave no sign of it. She relaxed and gave a tiny forced laugh. Leigh looked puzzled._

" _No, we are just friends. What gave you that idea?" she asked, looking the little girl in the eyes._

" _I don't know, it just seemed like it. Hey!" she said, excited._

"_What?" Zelda asked warily._

" _You should get married!" the girl answered enthusiastically, "We could have a big wedding and I could be your flower girl and we could have a big party and.."_

" _Leigh!" Zelda cut her off._

"_What?" the little girl asked, "Don't you think that's a good idea?"_

"_No!" _

"_Why?" Leigh asked, a confused look on her face._

" _Link and I are just friends," Zelda said firmly._

"_Why?" the little girl repeated. Zelda slumped in her seat, tired of the argument._

"_I don't know why," she sighed, hugging Leigh tighter. The little girl touched her cheek._

" _Everything will be alright, Zellie," she declared, " We better hurry up, Daddy's getting ahead of us."_

Zelda smiled slightly to herself, thinking of what Link would have looked like if he had heard that conversation. She imagined a look of horror, mixed with one of dread. However, that didn't seem to fit on his face, which was weird. She could never imagine Link married. He had a spirit of adventure that she had always envied, and she doubted he would appreciate a wife tying him down. She sighed sadly. She wished she could be like that, always having an adventure, being able to make your own decisions. She had known for a long time that whoever she married would be of benefit to Hyrule, and she had accepted that, but never liked it, and now, after being with Link, she bitterly resented it.

Just for the sake of her amusement, she imagine what life would be like being married to Link. Leigh would be their daughter, of course, and they would all live in his home outside of Cordono Village. Everyday would be a new adventure. They would fish in the creek that ran near his home and swim. They would raise animals and go riding, just to see what was on the other side of the hill. They would have friends, true friends, not "friends" like ones she had at court, and…

Zelda stopped herself. She was starting to like the idea of marriage to Link way too much.

_I don't love him,_ she thought,_ Do I?_

She went over the events of the previous days. The easy and light-hearted banter. The serious conversations on late nights sitting by the fire. The look in his eyes when he looked at her, caring and understanding. The way he and Leigh acted, just like a father and daughter should.

During her musings she had walked to the top of a hill, and stood looking over the field. The full moon glowed in serenity and the stars twinkled merrily overhead. A fine mist had risen, obscuring the sight of the grass. The breeze had a cold bite to it, and Zelda felt chilled to the bone.

"Cool night, isn't it," a man's deep voice spoke from behind her. She didn't have to turn around to know the owner of the voice.

" It is indeed," she spoke calmly as Link stepped up beside her. She looked over to see him watching him, concern and amusement coloring his expression.

" What's wrong, Zel?" he asked, "Can't sleep?" She nodded, eyes intently staring at her toes. Much to her surprise, he enfolded her in a huge bear hug, chin resting on the top of her head.

"Link!" she laughed, trying half-heartedly to fend him off, "What are you doing?"

"I'm cold," he said simply, " And I'm too lazy to go get a cloak. If you want me to quit, you'll have to get me one." She turned to glare mockingly at him.

"I'm not your servant," she said, trying to be serious and not really doing a good job of it, "Get it yourself."

"Oh, well," he said, "You promised me a hug anyway." She was getting nice and warm, so she didn't argue about it.

They stood there in silence for awhile, just enjoying each other's warmth and presence. Zelda felt more at peace now than she had in a long time. She had no idea, but she took a strange comfort in his closeness, and felt that he felt the same with her.

"Link," she said quietly, shifting so that she could look at his face.

"Yes, my dear?" he asked, looking down at her. Her heart started racing in her chest.

"Do you really mean that?" she asked before she could stop herself. He just smiled at her.

"Let's find out," he said, lowering his face. And just like her dream, she raised hers. He lowered his some more, their lips nearly touching. However, unlike her dreams, this time they did.

How long they stood there, washed in moonlight, she could not say. When the kiss ended, she stepped back, her heart pounding in her chest. He smiled at her, and winked.

" I think that's a yes."

* * *

**A/N: Remember, this is a romance too, and I realized that I hadn't really described exactly their relationship to each other, so I wrote this chapter. They're not in love, or at least they don't believe they are. They won't realize they're in love until a bit later. I just wanted to throw this in to tide you over. R&R, please.**


	9. Chapter 8: Through a Child's Eyes

**A/N: Hey everybody. As much as I hate to say it, I'm beginning to notice the first symptoms of a case of writer's block, so it might be several days before I update again. I'm going to start a regiment of large doses of TP and OoT, with a little MM thrown in, so maybe it won't be all that long. This chapter is going to be told from Leigh's POV, mainly for character development. Enjoy.**

Leigh sighed contentedly, watching the flames dance their joyful dance for her. Night was about to fall, and the sun had dipped beneath the horizon, masking the land in twilight. This was always her favorite time of day, when it was cool, but there was still enough light to see, so she could play.

Whenever Daddy set up camp and Zellie started supper, Leigh would always explore the area, checking for bad guys. Sometimes there were bad guys, if fireflies were bad guys, but Leigh always took care of them for her Daddy. She would steal one of his bottles, then use it to capture them.

He always thanked her for keeping on the lookout for bad guys and keeping them all safe, before rewarding her with a bedtime story. He would set her in his lap and tell her amazing stories about the distant past and Heroes.

Whenever he didn't tell her a story, Zellie did. However, Daddy usually told adventure stories, while Zellie told stories about love, and knights in shining armor, or princesses. She could never tell Daddy, of course, but she liked Zellie's stories better. She liked his, too, but Zellie was a girl, too, and she knew what stories girls liked to hear.

Leigh was still unsure about Daddy and Zellie's relationship to each other. When she had first met them in the old building, she had thought they were married, but soon learned that they weren't. She had had asked Daddy whether they were married or not, but all he did was smile sadly at her before telling her that they weren't, and that they were just friends. Zellie had said something like that, too.

Leigh grinned impishly as she remembered spying on them a few nights ago. She hadn't be able to hear what they had been saying, but they had been hugging. She giggled as she imagined Zellie blushing during the hug. She seemed like the sort of girl who would.

"Leigh! Link! Dinner's ready!" Zellie called.

"It's about time," Daddy grumbled irritably, sitting next to Leigh. She giggled and he glared at her.

"Don't be mad, Daddy," she said, laughing, "You play pranks on us all the time."

"Yeah, but you two are short," he said, "I'm not, there's a difference."

"Daddy, you aren't making sense."

"I'm grumpy, I don't have to make sense," he said. Zellie handed him a bowl of stew, and he grumped at her. She just laughed, and tousled his hair.

"Alright, alright, you win," he smiled.

After supper, they sat in front of the fire, and Daddy told her a story about how the Hero of Time saved the Gorons from the dragon of Death Mountain. Soon afterward, Leigh pretended to fall asleep.

" I think she's asleep," Daddy whispered to Zellie, who murmured an agreement. Leigh felt herself be gently picked up and tucked into her blankets.

"Sleep well, Leigh," Zellie said quietly. She felt Zellie's lips kiss her cheek, and soon heard her walk back over to the fire. Leigh smiled slightly and opened her eyes enough so that she could see them.

Daddy and Zellie sat side-by-side very closely, probably without even realizing it.

"Link," she heard Zellie say.

"Yes, Zel?" he replied, taking his lyre from his case. He began playing a soft, slow song, and Leigh sighed as she snuggled deeper in her blankets.

"What are you going to do after this?" Zellie asked, her voice subdued.

" I really don't know, Zel," he answered, still playing, " I know it's time for me to move on from Cordono Village, but that's about it." He paused for a minute. " I just remembered something. Who's Leigh going to stay with?"

Leigh hadn't thought of that. She knew that the traveling wouldn't last forever, but she hadn't really thought of the future.

" Both of you could stay at the Castle," Zellie said with a somewhat pleading tone, " She could have her own rooms, and yours would adjoin hers, and they could be near mine so that we could all see each other everyday." Daddy was silent for a minute.

" What could I do for work?" he asked finally, looking at the fire intently.

" You could be my personal servant," she teased, or at least that was what it seemed to Leigh.

" You wouldn't work me too hard, would you?" he asked in a bantering tone, " You know how terribly wimpy I am."

" Well, not _too _hard," she said slyly, " You would just have to follow me around, doing exactly what I say."

"Don't I do that anyway?" Daddy asked amusedly.

" Yes, but at least you'll be paid for it," Zelda answered unabashedly.

" Spending time in your divine company is payment enough," he said lightly.

" You're horrible!" she laughed, laying her head on his shoulder. He placed an arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer. Both of them seemed unconscious gestures, as if the two of them were unaware about what was happening.

Everything was going to be fine. Leigh smiled smugly to herself as she fell into sleep.

**Sorry about the short chapter, but that danged writer's block is coming on strong. Anyway, this chapter was mainly for developing Leigh's character, which it may or may not have done. Like I said earlier, it may be a while before I update again, sorry. R&R, please.**


	10. Chapter 9: Just a Day in the Life

**A/N: Okay, I guess I lied again. I have a bad habit of doing that sometimes, I suppose. I have no idea what purpose this chapter serves, except maybe as a bit of filler. I still haven't decided where I want to go next with Link and them. Oh well, I'll decide before long. If you have any ideas, just let me know. Thanks to all of you who are reviewing. Anyway, enjoy.**

The man known as Ganondorf, although in his own opinion, he had long ago surpassed the title of man, impatiently drummed his fingers on the cold stone of his obsidian throne, awaiting news of the whereabouts of that upstart "Hero" and the other thorn in his side, the Princess Zelda. With his other hand, he stroked the pommel of the blade that rested beside him.

The Nemesis Sword. He was still rather proud of it, and slightly angry that he had never thought of it before. With power equal to that of that accursed sword, the "so-called" Master Sword, it neatly severed the effect that the Master Sword exerted on the world, which allowed his power to grow, although at an infuriating trickle.

At least, until that blasted child showed up. Ganondorf's yellow eyes twitched with rage. Now that he had freed one of the sages, it would be impossible to reclaim it. The only reason he had been able to kill them was the element of surprise. But, if freed, they wouldn't be caught unaware again. Even if their bodies had perished, their souls lived on.

Ganondorf sighed, running his hand through his blood-red hair. He could not remember being so tired in a long, long time. The loss of power, even such a slight loss, left him drained and exhausted, wishing for nothing more than a warm bed.

But he could not go to bed just yet. He still had reports to go over, and he was still waiting on that scout to return. So much to do, so much.

The bleached bone doors of his throne room screamed as the scout he had sent to find the pair stuck his head in nervously and slowly walked across the onyx tiles to kneel before Ganondorf.

"Well?" Ganondorf asked eagerly, a maniacal light coming to his eyes, "Speak, man." The scout stood and adjusted his chain mail absently.

"I, uh, found them, my liege," he said uneasily. Ganondorf noticed this unease and narrowed his menacing eyes.

" There's something more, isn't there?" Ganondorf asked quietly.

" They saw me, and knew immediately who I was," the scout answered, "The lady, the Princess Zelda, wanted to kill me, but the man with her wouldn't let her. Said something about how we shouldn't stoop to…" he stopped, looking at Ganondorf in terror.

"Stoop to my level, huh?" Ganondorf finished for him, dark amusement in his voice, " I figured as such. Where were they at, my servant?"

" Kakariko Village, my liege," he answered, " In the inn known as the House of Impa."

" Goddesses, I love irony," Ganondorf chuckled malevolently, " The house of one of the most important figures in Hylian history is now an inn. Capitalism at its best, wouldn't you say?" The scout, unsure of how to reply, just nodded his head.

"My liege, if I may ask, what do you plan to do next?" the scout asked, " I live to serve you anyway I can." Ganondorf looked at him for a long few minutes before replying.

" You are eager in your treason to your princess," he said quietly, " While that served me quite well, it leaves me with doubts as to your sincerity. Once a traitor, always a traitor, as it were. Can I trust you to perform any task for me?"

" Of course, you can," the scout said fervently, " My life is yours."

" And so it will be," Ganondorf said, " Your life has been useful to me so far, but I believe that your death will serve me far better."

" Wha-" the scout began to exclaim before an energy blast slammed into his chest. The newly made corpse crashed to the floor with a loud thump. Ganondorf rose from his throne and drew the Nemesis Sword, the black blade shimmering in the candlelight. He grasped the crimson hilt firmly and stuck it in the dead center of the corpse's torso.

Ganondorf drew deeply from the Triforce of Power and sent the power coursing through the sword and into the cadaver of the scout. For several minutes, Ganondorf sent power surging through the Nemesis Sword and into his newest creation.

When he was done, Ganondorf sheathed the sword and collapsed into his throne. He was panting with exertion, and sweat dripped from his olive-tinged skin. After resting for several minutes, Ganondorf drew once more from the Triforce and spoke.

" Arise and serve your master," he commanded, fist raised, Triforce glowing its gentle golden glow. The being sighed and got on its feet.

The scout's body had been completely reshaped. It stood at an impressive six feet, with fairly emphasized muscles as well as pointed ears that weren't there earlier. But those weren't the most radical changes to it.

It's body was completely black. It's skin, clothing, and hair all had the same exact dark hue to them, with slightly darker lines where clothing ended and skin began. It's eyes, unlike its body, were of the same blood-red as the hilt of the Nemesis Sword.

" Well met, my liege," it said in a deep, baritone voice, bowing its head slightly

" Well met, Dark Link," Ganondorf replied, bowing his head slightly as well.

" What would you have me do?" Dark Link asked, " You have not summoned me in centuries, so I am unaware of present happenings."

" You are aware of your opposite," Ganondorf said. It was not a question. The being's eyes burned with hate at the mention of the Hero.

" Not the current one," it answered, " but they're all the same, so there's really not much to know. Is he to be killed?"

"No, he has already began the purification of the temples, there's no point in stopping him. He will draw the Master Sword like he usually does after he finishes with the temples. If you can kill him then, do it. However, do not kill Zelda. I have plans for her. Bring his body with you, I can extract the Triforce from him that way."

" What would you have me do until then?" it asked. Ganondorf smiled.

" Find his weakness. Do not let yourself be seen. Follow in the shadows. Report back to me when he reaches the final temple. Are you orders clear?"

Dark Link smiled darkly, " Crystal."

"Then, go, and know that my power is with you." Dark Link bowed, and quietly faded in the shadows.

Ganondorf leaned backward, hands resting behind his head. Outside, the thunder rumbled in a malevolent chuckle and Ganondorf joined it.

He looked around him ,then stood up and walked over to the entrance to his bed chambers. The reports could wait, and Ganondorf always enjoyed drifting off to sleep listening to nature's dark music.

**A/N: Okay, apparently I did more in this chapter than I had planned on. I wasn't even planning on including Dark Link in this story, and yet the idea just came to me. It's amazing what you can come up with out of the blue lol. Anyway, R&R and peace be with you all.**


	11. Chapter 10: Rest

**A/N: Okay, I think I finally figured out where I'm going with this…I think. I'm not too sure of anything anymore lol. Anyway, thanks to all who read and reviewed. Enjoy.**

* * *

Link yawned loudly as he stretched and sat up from his comfortable feather mattress. The pale light of the dawn poured in from the clean white curtains, and people were bustling outside the inn. He was tempted to indulge in a few more hours of sleep, but ultimately decided that he had had enough rest and it might become a habit, so Link got out of bed and quickly dressed.

The floorboards creaked as he walked to the door and exited. As he looked at the door opposite his that led to Leigh and Zelda's room, he grinned mischievously. He knew that neither one of them were early risers, but that would be cruel, and he was feeling generous this morning.

So, instead, he walked down the stairs and into the nearly empty common room. A cheery fire was blazing in the stone fireplace and the smell of fresh-baked bread and newly churned butter permeated the air, reminding his stomach that he had not fed it today.

"Good morning, dear," the plump, matronly innkeeper said, coming out of the kitchen with the bread and butter, " Would you care for a bite of breakfast?"

"Yes, please," he said, sitting at a table and picking up a newspaper, " And do you have any coffee?"

" Of course, dear," she said, setting a loaf of bread and a bowl of butter before bringing him a mug of coffee, " Will your lovely wife and daughter be joining you?" Link had just brought the mug to his lips and taken a swallow before gagging.

" Are you okay?" she asked, concerned.

" Yes, ma'am, just went down the wrong pipe. They'll be done in a while. They're not early risers, you know." The innkeeper nodded wisely before scurrying back to the kitchen.

Link leaned back in his chair reflectively. She had given him a good idea. A very good idea. A man traveling with his wife and daughter was less likely to attract notice than a man traveling with a woman and a small girl. He grinned suddenly. He decided that it would make an excellent surprise for Zelda. Link was just thoughtful like that sometimes.

As the morning dragged on, only one other person came into the common room, a lovely red-headed girl about his and Zelda's age. He nodded to her as she made her way to another table and she smiled at him.

"Hello, there," she said in a calm, melodious voice, " I haven't seen you before. Are you new to Kakariko?"

" Just passing through," he said, " The name's Link Aeraes."

"Malon Amara," she said, " What brings you to this quaint little town?"(**A/N: Don't ask me where the last names came from lol)**

"Quaint?" he asked amusedly. This was the biggest single town in Hyrule, other than the Capital.

" You've never been to the Castle Town, have you?" she asked.

" I must say I haven't," he said, taking another sip of coffee.

" Trust me, you'll know what I mean as soon as you enter the gates. Anyway, back to my original question. What brings you to Kakariko?"

" Well, I came here with my wife and daughter to show them where I'd been born, but apparently, it's been knocked down, so we just stuck around for a little relaxation. You?" He thought he heard her mutter under her breath "lucky woman", but it was probably his imagination. In any case, she smiled up at him.

" My father owns the Lon Lon Ranch, and sent me to take orders from the various inns and shops. I just stopped by for a little breakfast."

" Well, I hope everything goes well with you, but I'm afraid I need to wake my girls up. They'd lay around bed all day if I let them. It was nice meeting you, Malon, and I hope that we meet again some day."

" And you as well, Mr. Aeraes," she smiled, her emerald eyes shining.

As Link walked back up the stairs, he couldn't seem to shake those eyes from his mind. Disturbed somewhat, he knocked on the girls' door, but no answer came from it. Sighing, he went back downstairs and left the inn.

He wound up at the graveyard, standing in front of his mother's grave. It was a simple granite headstone, the inscriptions all but unreadable, due to time and erosion. He leaned forward and brushed the dirt off of it.

Feeling somewhat ashamed, he guessed it had been years since the grave had been visited. From what he remembered of his mother, she had had no family, or if she did, she was not on speaking terms with them. Link's alcoholic father had abandoned them when Link was just a newborn. Everyone had looked down on her for being an unwed teenage mother, and she had no friends.

She focused all of her love and attention on Link. He had never learned what she had down for a living, and intuitively felt that he probably didn't want to know.

Whatever she did, she always earned enough to have food on the table. Until she contracted the disease that stole her life, that is. Link had awakened one morning, way later than usual. His mother woke him up most mornings bright and early for a good breakfast. He had then walked into his mother's room and found her body locked in rigor mortis.

Link sighed, and felt a tear drop to the dusty ground in front of the lonely tombstone.

" Bad memories?" a melodious voice asked behind him. He did not turn around as Malon stepped up beside him.

He gestured sadly with one arm, " My mother. She died when I was seven. I was an orphan after that." He turned around then to see that her eyes had clouded over in sympathy.

"I'm so sorry," she said honestly, " What happened to your father?"

" He and I never met," he answered evenly, " He wanted nothing to do with me, or I with him."

"What did you do after that?" she asked.

" I survived," he said, not really wanting to talk about it. She seemed to understand and patted his back.

" You know something?" she asked, " I think I like you. I would be honored to call you my friend." He smiled at her.

" I would like to call you my friend as well," he said.

" Well, friend, anytime you want to visit at the ranch, there will be a place for you. It's a very restful place."

" I might just have to take you up on that offer sometime, friend," he said with genuine gratitude.

" Well, Link Aeraes," she said, " I'm afraid that I need to finish my business here and get back to my father. See you around sometime."

" Yeah," he replied, " I'll see you later."

* * *

"One hundred," Zelda said, setting the brush aside and examining her handiwork. What she saw satisfied her. Leigh's wheat colored hair shined and every lock was neatly in place. All in all, the girl looked like a princess.

Which, now that Zelda thought about it, she actually was one. Since Leigh was her adopted daughter, that would make her a member of the royal family. She smiled to herself as she imagined the look of horror on her father's face whenever Zelda introduced Leigh as her "daughter."

She hoped her father was well. The last she had heard, he had fled to Termina, following his advisors' suggestions. Whether Ganondorf had found him or not was a mystery. A knock on the door brought her out of her dark thoughts.

"Yes?" she asked, bending over to help Leigh with her shoe laces.

" It is I, the delightful and charming man you have fallen madly in love with," Link declared from the other side of the door.

"Who?" she asked, standing back up straight, and sharing a smile with Leigh.

" You take a lot of fun out of this, Zel," he complained, " And could you please open the door? People are looking at me funny."

" That's just because you're a funny sort of person, my hero," Zelda winked at Leigh, who giggled, " The door's been unlocked the entire time."

" Ha ha," Link muttered, opening the door, " Oh, my ribs. You're a funny lady, you know that?" Leigh ran to him and he picked her up and spun her around, " Hey, kid."

" Have you had breakfast yet?" Zelda asked.

" Yep," he said, setting Leigh down, " I tried to wake you up to join me, but nobody ever answered me. By the way, do you know a Malon Amara?"

" Yes," Zelda asked, confused, " She's one of the few true friends I had before I left. How would you know her name?"

" Because she came into the common room for breakfast and we had a rather nice conversation. Oh, by the way, we're married now."

" What?!" Leigh and Zelda exclaimed in unison.

" Oh, relax," he said, slightly offended, " It's just a disguise. We're a couple with a daughter just here for some rest and fun. We're going to have to act married."

"Don't you already?" Leigh muttered under her breath.

"I didn't quite catch that," Link said to Leigh.

"Nothing, Daddy," the girl batted her eyelashes at him.

"That's what I thought," he said. He looked at Zelda. " Do you have a problem?" he grouched at Zelda, who was red faced with laughter.

" No," she laughed, linking her arm affectionately with his, " You know that I can't resist the chance to cuddle with you in public." He tried to scowl at her, but it melted into a big grin and laughter.

" I know," he smiled. He winked at Leigh and extended his other arm. " Shall we, ladies?"

Upon sitting at a table, Link's smile faded into a thoughtful expression.

" Zel," he said finally.

" Yes, dear?" she asked, remembering that they were "married."

" We've been traveling for several days with little rest. How about today we just have some fun before we climb the mountain?"

Zelda thought this over for a few minutes. She came to the conclusion that it probably wouldn't hurt, and that they could all use a day of relaxation.

"Okay," she agreed, causing a shout of glee from Leigh.

Over the next several hours, Link showed them around the village. They went into the shops, played some of the games, and watched a play at the outdoor theater. The play was a tragedy about a hero giving his all before finally succumbing to his wounds and his own broken heart. The acting was stupendous, but the writing left a lot to be desired.

* * *

Later that night, after putting Leigh to bed and locking the door, they climbed out the window and onto the roof of the building, watching the stars twinkle in the midnight sky. Zelda sighed and snuggled close to him.

" Getting a little close aren't you?" he asked amusedly. She lifted her head from his chest and winked at him.

"I'm allowed, since you're my husband now, apparently," she replied.

"I never realized 'pillow' was in the job description," he objected.

" Get over it," she laughed. She put her head back on his chest, and they laid together in companionable silence, watching the stars.

" Wife," he said suddenly.

"Huh?" she murmured.

" Nothing, just trying it out," he smiled, "Can you stand it?" She raised her head and kissed his cheek, her eyes shining with a mischievous glint.

" I think I can handle it."

**A/N: I have no idea what this chapter was for, except for introducing Malon and just a little more romance between Link and Zelda. This is a romance as well, remember. Malon is going to be important later, or at least I think she is. I haven't decided yet. Anyway, R&R.**


	12. Chapter 11: Onward Bound

**Disclaimer: Uh….yeah. I'm pretty sure I don't own Zelda, because this would be a game if I did. Sorry, no Author's Note this time.**

The skies over Death Mountain were a clear sapphire without a cloud in sight, with the sun shining a brilliant welcome to the travelers.. The mountain was unusually silent this morning as they made their way up the red, dirt path that led to the summit. Unfortunately, the silence had to end at some point.

"Link, give up! We're lost!" she yelled at him, who was farther up ahead with Leigh riding in front of his saddle.

"We're not lost," he said, stopping Epona so he could pull out his worn map. Epona whinnied in gratitude for the rest. "How can a person can lost on a mountain?"

" Well, apparently, you're the first, congratulations," Zelda said, riding Wind up to stand beside Epona, " Now, being a hero won't be the only thing about you that's in the history books." Zelda immediately wished she hadn't said that.

" That wasn't nice," Link said to her, voice slightly hurt.

"I'm sorry, Link," she sighed, "It's just that we've spent all morning wandering in circles and I'm starting to get tired. Why can't we head back to Kakariko and ask for directions to Goron City?"

"We have a map, we don't need directions," Link said, raising the afore mentioned map above his head to get a better look. Leigh sighed before opening her eyes and stretching.

"Daddy?" she said sleepily.

"Yes, hon?" he replied absently.

"You're reading the map upside-down." Link blinked before turning the map around. He sighed as he came to the realization that she was right. He hated being outsmarted by a child, which reminded him of something.

"Zel?" he said without looking away from the map.

"Yes, my hero?" Zelda said, struggling to keep the laughter out of her voice.

"Let's just keep this little adventure inside this particular family, please. I wouldn't want people to think that the Hero is incompetent or anything like that," Link said before changing the subject, " Okay, we go right at this fork, then we should be at the city."

"Whatever you say, my husband," Zelda agreed pleasantly. Link looked to his side and glared at her. She just smiled back at him and batted her eyelashes.

"Smartass," he muttered.

"Now, now, there's no need for name calling," she laughed, which caused him to raise his head and laugh uproariously. Epona snorted in irritation at the sudden, loud noise. "Why do you even try to act angry?" she asked curiously, " It never works." He grinned at her.

"I'm trying to work on my intimidation skills. Were you intimidated?"

"No, not really," she said unabashedly, which caused him to sigh melodramatically.

" Oh, woe is me, I'm not that scary after all. And after I spent all those hours working on my facial expressions in front of the mirror, too. Oh well, I guess that's why I have you. You can be the hard-boiled adventurer who never lets anybody or anything get in her way, and I can be the zany, yet loveable one, whose main purpose in life is comic relief." Zelda thought about that for a moment.

" I think I can handle that," she said, smiling widely, " What about Leigh?"

"She just stands in the background and lets silence do her talking for her. You know, kind of like Sir Rambo in the stories." **(A/N: Sorry, I'm a big Rambo fan, and I just had to do it.)**

"Link, you're weird," she said.

"But you love me anyway, don't you?" he asked innocently. She decided to ignore that statement and change the subject.

"So, you think I'm intimidating?" she asked lightly.

" When you want to be," he replied, "I prefer to just walk softly, and carry a big sword." Zelda looked at him oddly, one golden eyebrow arched slightly. "What?"

" Nothing, my hero. Nothing at all," she sighed, " Here we are." Link looked around confusedly, seeing only rocks and an entrance to a large cave.

" Where?" he asked, puzzled. Zelda pointed toward the cave.

" There." Link looked skeptical.

" There? In that cave?"

" Yes, dear, in that cave," Zelda answered patiently.

" Okay, whatever you say, Zel," Link said, lifting Leigh in front of him and handing her to Zelda, who looked at him questioningly.

" Just in case there's trouble," Link explained, shifting around so his bow and sword were in easy reach.

" Link, these are Gorons, They're the gentlest people in the world."

" Ganondorf has a long arm." was all he said.

Goron City was an immense cavern with many, tinier caves offshooting it, providing homes for the many Gorons who lived there. There were several levels to it, all of them cheerily lit. Strangely, though, no Gorons seemed to be in sight.

"This cannot be good," Zelda murmured worriedly

They picketed Epona and Wind near the entrance and walked farther into the deserted city-cave. Link slowly drew his sword and scouted a tad bit farther ahead.

"STOP, INTRUDERS!!" a gigantic voice called out from behind them. They all jumped in surprise before whirling around to find a lone Goron facing them. He was huge, about twelve feet tall, making him about several hundred years old, with stones radiating from his head like a lion's mane and a large sword sheathed at his side. Zelda knew him.

"Darunia?" Zelda called, " Uncle Darunia! It's me, Zelda!" The Goron stopped its advance and looked at her in shock.

" Little Zellie?" he asked. Then he shook himself. "No, it's another of Ganondorf's tricks. The daughter of my Sworn Brother, my niece, died in the assault on Hyrule Castle."

" No, Uncle, it really is me! I escaped from the castle before Ganondorf gained control of it." she cried, hugging Leigh to her.

"Oh, Zelda," he said, his gravelly voice softening somewhat, "I am so glad to see you well. I had wondered long whether anybody had managed to escape the slaughter. But, I can see that this is not a social visit. Who is this man who travels with you, and what is your purpose here in my city?

"My name is Link Aeraes," Link answered, before Zelda could speak for him. He needed to show this Goron that he could speak for himself, and Zelda wasn't really helping at the moment, " My purpose here is to cleanse the temple of of your people."

" Aeraes," Darunia breathed, " That name is not unknown to me. Tell me, boy, was your father Sahasrahla Aeraes, by any chance?" (**A/N: Bonus Points to anyone who catches the reference)**

" My adoptive father," Link said, " How do you know him?"

" During one of his wanderings, he was caught in a fierce storm, and sought refuge here. At this time, I had not been elected Patriarch yet, and was serving as the Overgeneral of the Goron military. Our army had not been needed in many years, and the soldiers were lazy and pampered. My father, the patriarch, sensed this and asked Sahasrahla to draw up a training regimen and develop a sword style suited to the Goron people. My father, who, oddly, was named Link, declared him a Sworn Brother and offered him shelter whenever he needed it."

" I never knew that," Link said, stunned. The Goron narrowed his eyes as an idea came to him.

" You say that Sahasrahla was your father." Link nodded. "And he taught you the way of the sword." Link nodded again. The Goron sighed. " You are aware that only people of the Goron tribe are allowed in the temple, correct?"

"I was not aware of that," Link said, casting Zelda a look.

"What?" she said, " I never figured that we would make it this far."

"Why is it that only a Goron can enter the temple?" Link asked. Darunia cleared his throat.

" Back before the Imprisoning War," he began, "My people had just lost a war to yours. The king demanded that the Gorons pay tribute and become a nation subject to him. We didn't have a choice in the matter, so we reluctantly agreed. The reason for the war was the minerals that are mined in the temple, which were very valuable at that time. However, the king was generous enough to allow us to keep all the old laws we had made for ourselves. So, on the day before the formal annexation, the elders passed the law that only people of the Goron tribe may enter the temple, which infuriated the king. But, there was nothing he could do about it, so he eventually just left us alone. After that, we never thought to rescind the law."

" Is there anyway I can join the tribe?" Link asked quickly. Darunia mulled the question around in his massive head for a minute."

"You can attempt to become a Sworn Brother, like the Hero of Time did," he said finally.

" How can I do that?" Link asked excitedly.

" You must show a feat of great strength and valor," Darunia answered.

" What do you want me to do?" Link asked in a resigned tone.

" You and I were both trained by the great Sahasrahla," Darunia said, "We will duel."

"What are the conditions?" Link asked.

"It's not to the death, if that's what you were thinking. Have you ever sparred?" Link nodded. " It's like that. If you win, you become my Sworn Brother. If you lose, you leave. That simple.

" That seems reasonable," Link said, " Points?"

" Yes," Darunia said, pleased, "Zelda, will you keep score?"

"Yes, uncle," she sighed, taking Leigh with her. Darunia drew his massive sword and Link raised his.

" Begin, gentlemen," she said.

Darunia moved in a flash, much more quickly than a creature of his stature should have. Link parried and quickly sliced at his neck. Darunia ducked under it, and Link changed the angle of the strike to smack him on top of the head with the pommel before backflipping out of the way.

" Point, Link," Zelda said in a clear voice.

The Goron rubbed the top of his head and charged again. He swung his sword in a large, horizontal swipe and Link rolled under it, sword tip aimed upward. Darunia saw this and stepped backward, stabbing toward the ground. Link rolled to the side and got to his feet before jumping into the air. Darunia reversed his grip on his sword and Link's stomach slammed into the pommel stone.

" Point, Darunia," Zelda said, hugging Leigh, who was watching with awe-struck eyes.

Strangely, when Link was struck, his blood began surging through his veins, and all thought vanished. He began a furious assault, alternating between the attack sequence he usually used and other exotic combinations. Darunia blocked for the first few seconds, then was eventually overpowered by the sheer verocity of Link's attack.

" Enough," Darunia said, holding his side, " I am defeated. You are truly the son of Sahasrahla and my Sworn Brother." Link bowed with his sword point stabbed into the ground.

" I would be honored to serve my people and my Sworn Brother by cleansing the temple of evil," Link said formally. Darunia was about to answer when Zelda interrupted.

" Darunia, where are the Gorons?" Darunia's face fell in grief.

" I was about to say something to you. They are imprisoned in the temple by Ganondorf's men, and I was on the way to try and help them when I saw you. It is obvious to me now that if there is anyone who can save them, it is you. Link, will you help your people?" He said this with a heavy gravity to his voice. Link was silent for a minute before finally replying.

" I will save my people."

**A/N: Okay, this was much better than the first one. But, I'm not really satisfied with it yet. Oh,well. It'll do.**


	13. Chapter 12:Through the Fire and Flames

**A/N: Sorry about the long wait. I've been working on another story, so I really haven't had the time to write much for this one. If you want to check it out sometime, I'd appreciate it. Speaking of that, I've got a poll up on my profile about my stories, so please take the time to vote on it, please. Thanks for reading, all. I'm glad that people are enjoying my story. Alright, now I'll shut up, and let you read. Enjoy.**

As soon as Link and Zelda entered the temple, he began to question his decision about cleansing it. Link, by nature, did not like warm temperatures, and the one thing that temple had was warm temperatures.

"Great," Link muttered, trying to wipe away some of the sweat that had suddenly started pouring down his face. Zelda didn't say anything, but the look on her face, after trying to do the same, had the echo of agreement to it.

The main room of the Fire Temple was a vaulted chamber with two doors heading off to the west and to the east, and large, locked door in the precise center of the back wall.

"So, which way?" Zelda panted, trying to fan with her hand. Link sank into a contemplative silence.

"I think the first thing that we need to do," Link said, "is to find a way to protect ourselves from the heat. Do you have any sort of magic we could use?"

"There's a piece of clothing in the treasury that the Hero of Time used when he cleansed the temple. It's one of the few articles of the Hero that's left, and it's still in the same condition that it was when the Hero wore it."

"That's awfully swell, Princess," Link said dryly, "But do we really have time to backpack all the way to Hyrule Castle to get it?" Zelda ignored that comment.

"Fortunately, the treasury room has an enchantment on it that allows a member of the Royal Family to summon anything within it."

"Handy," Link said blandly.

"Very," she agreed.

"What about you?" he asked, "What are you going to do?"

"You'll see," she said, winking playfully at him.

"I can barely wait," Link said dryly. She smiled at him before closing her eyes and slowing her breathing. She clasped her hands together, the Triforce on her hand glowing softly. Light started emanating from the air above her hands, slowly forming into a solid object.

"There," she said proudly as the tunic gently landed in her arms. It was an almost identical match to his own, green tunic, except for the dark red of the fabric. It looked exactly his size.

"Very nice," he said, taking the tunic from her, "Now, turn around while I change. I blush real easily, and we wouldn't want that, would we?"

"Of course not," she said with a perfectly straight face as she turned around. Link quickly stripped out of his old tunic and put on the new.

"Okay, I'm decent," Link said as the material of the fine, red tunic settled around him, "How do I look?" She turned around then, and looked him up and down with an appreciative smile on her face.

"Very dashing," she murmured, coming forward to lay a hand on his chest gently.

"Thank you, my Lady," he grinned at her, "Now, you probably need to hurry up and do what you need to do. I want to hurry up and get finished so we can get back to Leigh. I don't like leaving her with someone I don't know."

"Oh, Link," she laughed, "Everything will be perfectly okay. I used to stay with Uncle Darunia all the time. Now, turn around. I'm about to change, and I blush easily." Puzzled, Link turned around, facing the entrance. He suddenly saw light out of the corner of his eyes, but resolutely stood facing toward the door.

"Okay, you can turn around," Zelda's voice said, amused. He turned back around and saw her. Link was pretty sure that his jaw didn't hit the floor, but if it could, it probably would have.

"Oh my goddesses," Link stammered, still stunned.

"What?" she asked, one golden eyebrow arched over an eye with an iris of red, "Dodongo got your tongue?"

"You're, uh, different," Link said, trying to get his thinking back in order.

"Yes, well. Transformation spells will do that to a person, I suppose. Currently, I'm a Sheikah, who are impervious to heat and cold." He couldn't see her mouth, but he was pretty sure it curled up into an impish smile. "How do I look?"

"Uh, intimidating," Link said. She reached over and patted his cheek.

"That's the idea."**(A/N: By the way, Sheik is female in this story. Mainly, I wanted to keep the whatever you want to call it going on between Link and Zelda. Besides, it would just be slightly weird if Sheik was a guy. I'm probably going to just keep calling her Zelda and not Sheik, so I can keep it straight, if nothing else :D)**

"So, which way?" Link asked, changing the subject.

"I don't know," she said, "West?"

"Sounds fine to me," Link agreed.

* * *

The room was more or less a lava-filled chamber with a ledge near the ceiling and no way up.

"Well," Link said, scratching his head in puzzlement, "Wonder how we're supposed to up there. I don't see any Hookshot targets or anything like that." Zelda stared up at the ledge intensely, her crimson eyes narrowed thoughtfully.

"Hold me," she demanded suddenly. Link blinked at her in surprise.

"You know I appreciate a good cuddle at much as the next guy, but isn't this the wrong time?"

"There's always time for a cuddle," she declared loftily, "But, this has nothing to do with that. Just do it, Link. You'll see."

"Alright," he said, taking the blue-clad Zelda in his arms.

"Hold tight," she whispered in his ear, amusement filling her voice. Link was just about to ask why when he was suddenly lifted into the air and reappearing on the other ledge.

"Din in heaven!" he swore, landing on his ass with a hearty thump, "How did you do that?" She winked at him with one red eye.

"Old Sheikah trick," she told him, suppressing a giggle, "Quit being a wimp and get up. This door's unlocked."

"I'll show you wimp," he muttered under his breath as he shakily got to his feet.

"What was that, Link?" Zelda asked innocently.

"Nothing, dear," he sighed, drawing his sword and shield.

"That's what I thought. Okay, let's go."

* * *

The next room was just a plain, circular chamber with a door at the other end. It look perfectly innocuous, but that's what precisely made Link's instincts kick in to full alert.

"Guard my back," he whispered, "Do you have some sort of weapon you can use?" She just arched an eyebrow at him. "Dumb question, sorry," he apologized.

"Just do what you need to do," she said, making a chain appear out of nowhere.

Link cautiously started walking toward the center of the room, his senses on alert, but not sensing anything.

"I think everything's clear," Link called to Zelda.

Of course, that's when the room decided to prove him wrong. The torches that had been cheerfully dancing in the corners of the room went out at the same time, and an evil chuckle radiated from the darkness.

"Hey, kid," a voice said from the shadows, "I'm back."

"Don't you ever die?" Link groaned, his eyes hastily scanning the darkness for any movement.

"I'm just like a juicy rumor about the Royal Family," Phantom Ganon agreed, "No matter how many times a person tries to kill me, I always come back."

"Aren't you straining the metaphor somewhat?" Link asked despite himself.

"Hey, you try having your script written by someone who thinks he's funny," the Phantom growled from the shadows, "I have to say what the master tells me to say. Anyway, enough with the banter. Time to die, boy."

"Insert witty comeback here," Link replied as he raised his shield up.

"Smartass," the Phantom snarled, "We'll see how smart you are after_ this_!"

The corners of the room suddenly lit up in a balls of malevolent energy and came shooting towards him.

"Crap," was all Link said as he hastily back flipped out the way. The energy balls crashed together and fizzled into nothingness, sending the room back into pitch-black darkness.

"Link!" Zelda's voice called from the shadows, "He's to your right!"

He didn't question her as he quickly closed in on the Phantom, who had apparently not been listening to the conversation. He started slashing wildly, and eventually wound up slicing it.

"Ouch, dammit, kid!" the Phantom snarled, "I hate when you do that. Let's try this again. With feeling." The corners lit up again and the balls went shooting toward Link.

This time, however, he was ready for it. He got into the stance for a spin attack, and sent each one flying back into their respective corners with one mighty spin. One of the energy spheres had connected with the Phantom, and had caused it to become solid.

"Crap," was all it said as a vengeful Link suddenly appeared in front of it and slammed his boot into the now physical Phantom Ganon's face, causing its skull to shatter, instantly killing the creation. It vanished without a sound and the torches gradually regain their joyous flames.

"Wow," Zelda breathed as she rejoined Link, "How did you manage to that with your boot? I saw you do that to the moblins,too, but I never thought to ask."

"Heavily reinforced steel in the toe," he said absently, watching a treasure chest materialize in the precise center of the room, "Good for persuading poisonous snakes not to nibble on your toes when you're not paying attention."

"Do you still feel grief when you kill?" she asked gently, placing her hand on his chest without thought.

"Yes," he said mournfully, "I know that these creatures want to kill me, and will if they get the chance, but it still brings me sorrow to have to do it. I know it's Ganondorf's magic that compels them to do it, but still…"

"I know," she said softly, "Let's see what's in the chest."

Without replying back, Link made his way to the chest, almost absently marveling at the gilding and beautiful carvings across it. With one hardy tug, he threw the top of the chest open, revealing a shield with a mirrored surface and red edges.

"Wow," he whistled as he lifted the shield above his head to get a better look.

'Is that the Mirror Shield?" Zelda asked excitedly "That's been lost for ages! I never realized that the Gorons had it!"

"Well, it's mine now," Link said as he unceremoniously dumped his former, wooden shield into the chest and fitted the Mirror Shield on his arm, "I'll give it back to them when I'm done. Or not. I kind of like it."

"Link!" she laughed, half scandalized.

"What?" Link asked as he admired his reflection in the shield's surface, "They can save their own collective butt next time."

"You're horrible," she said in mock anger.

"Yep, that's why they pay me the big Rupees," he agreed pleasantly, "Anyway, onward we go."

* * *

The next room was one of those that contained some of the imprisoned Gorons. There were about five cells and each one contained about five Gorons, each one of them with expressions of misery on their faces. Fortunately, though, it didn't seem like any had died or killed. At the sound of their footsteps, one of them looked up with hope replacing misery.

"Has Darunia sent you?" the Goron asked. When Link nodded affirmative, he sighed with relief. "You will have to kill the guard for the key to unlock the cells. Beware, though, the guard is an Iron Knuckle."

"What's an Iron Knuckle?" Link asked, grasping the rusted bars. The Goron pointed behind Link.

"Him. Watch out!" the Goron shouted. Link quickly rolled to the side, trusting the Goron's word. He got out the roll and turned to face his attacker.

What he saw scared the living crap out of him. The Iron Knucke was a good nine feet tall and completely encased in heavy steel, not to mention baring an axe that was as long as Link was.

"Well, this sucks," Link said. The creature's gear creaked as it took a step toward him.

"Doesn't it, though?" the creature said with an air of amusement. About that time, Link noticed that Zelda was nowhere to be seen, and he started to panic more. That is, until he saw her crouched on the ceiling, watching the creature intently. She made eye contact with him and mouthed,_ Keep him busy._ Link nodded slightly to relay that he understood, hoping that what he was about to do wouldn't kill him.

"So, that's a pretty good-sized axe, good fellow," Link said, mentally wincing and bracing himself, " Sure you're not compensating for something?"**( I'm sorry about that joke everybody. I just had to do it. Please forgive me. I really try not to do stuff like that, but sometimes it just presents itself so perfectly that I can't help it. Jokes like that won't pop up often, I promise.)**

It roared in fury and came charging at him, axe raised. Link yelped and back flipped out of the way, narrowly dodging a horizontal slash that would've split him in two if he had been hit. The Iron Knucke lost its balance and staggered. Link immediately jumped on its back and grabbed the creature by the helmet.

It tensed up and started bucking like an enraged bull, completely beyond rational thought by this point. He grasped the helmet tightly and yanked it off before planting his feet on its back and jumping to safety. It turned around to face him, a fiery rage burning in its undead eyes.

It took one step toward him, and suddenly stiffened. A knife blossomed from its forehead out of nowhere, causing it to fall to the dusty stone floor with a loud thud.

"Impress-oof!" Link started to say before Zelda fell on top of him from the ceiling. He glared at her and she just looked back at him, an amused twinkle in her eyes.

"Thanks for the soft landing," she said, rising to her feet and dusting herself off.

"You are so welcome," Link said sarcastically, "Maybe I should apply to be your personal floor mat. Does it pay well?"

"You'd do that anyway as my personal servant," she said absently, searching the remains for the key, "I'll make sure it's in your contract."

"Whoa, hold on, now," he said as he stood up, "I never agreed to that."

"You didn't have to," she said as she checked a satchel that the Iron Knuckle had been carrying with it, "My word is law in Hyrule."

"Well, that's unfortunate for me," Link said, crouching down to search another satchel it had been carrying, "Remind me not to make you mad."

"Yep, I might order you to dance sometime. You never know."

"I'd dance with you anyway," he said absently as he undid another satchel. The thing must've had a collection of satchels or something, because everywhere he looked, there was a satchel. After she was silent for a moment, Link looked up to see her staring at him with an odd light to her eyes.

"Would you really?" she asked quietly with an unusual intensity to the question.

"Of course, Zel," he said, starting to feel like he had said something wrong, "Is there something wrong with that?"

"Found it!" she exclaimed, ignoring his question. Link just decided to let it pass instead of pursuing the matter. It was a slightly touchy subject and he didn't want to say anything that might make her unhappy with him. She took the key and went about the business of unlocking all the cell doors. All of them quickly cleared out except for the one who had first spoken to them.

"Thank you for saving us," he said, bowing to them slightly, "Ganondorf's magic weakened us and allowed us to be captured. He has always hated the Gorons, so we were first on his list of conquests. He resurrected the old dragon that resided here centuries ago and planned on feeding the Goron people to it as soon as he consolidated his hold on Hyrule Castle."

"I'm glad I got here in time," Link said, "Where are the rest of our brethren?" "In the dragon's lair," the Goron replied, "None have been eaten yet, so that is good news. Ganondorf has not allowed his creature to feast without him." Link reached up and clasped the Goron on the shoulder.

"We'll take care of it," Link assured him, "Go and get to your city. I'm sure you're exhausted by your ordeal." The Goron smiled tiredly at him.

"You have no idea, brother," he said, "Please come visit me and my family after your business here is attended to. My son would love to meet you."

"And I him," Link said politely. The Goron chuckled.

"Until then," he said, "May your path always remain smooth." With that, he curled up into a ball and rolled out of the room.

"Nice guy," Link said, sitting down in the Iron Knuckle's throne, "I'm feeling a tad tired. I'm getting better with the Triforce thing, so at least I don't feel like I'm about to pass out, but I definitely need to rest for a minute."

"Sounds good," she said, sitting next to him on the one of the arms of the throne. Without really thinking, he put his left arm around her waist and laid his head on against her arm. She laid her cloth-covered cheek against the top of his head and for several minutes, they just sat there, resting.

"Link," Zelda said softly.

"Yes, Zel?"

"Have you ever thought of, you know, us?" she said, her voice filled with uncertainty.

"A little," he admitted, "It's just that…"

"I know," she said quietly, "It's just that I'm the princess of Hyrule and you are a peasant, and, even though arranged marriages are looked down upon by most people, its practice is still in use among the Royal Family."

"Yep," he agreed sadly.

"What if we could…you know?" she asked, unable to finish the sentence.

"Zel, I don't know," he sighed, "A part of me wants to try it, and another doesn't. If we were together, some many people would try and immerse Leigh and me in their schemes, and I don't really want to have to deal with that."

"What if it was just the two of us?" she asked, an almost desperation filling her voice, "If nothing else needed to be considered." Link was silent for a moment.

"Then, probably yes," he said finally, "I love you dearly as a friend, and it probably wouldn't take long for it to become more than that, but you know, there are other considerations that need to be remembered."

"Trust me," she laughed bitterly, "I know. I've been reminded my entire life that I am the property of Hyrule." Link hugged her tighter, and she fell silent. She sighed and started running her fingers through his hair. "Oh my hero," she said softly, "Sometimes I wonder if the Goddesses made a mistake choosing us. It doesn't seem like we're cut out for the job."

"Probably not," Link laughed quietly, "But think about it this way. Is there anyone else you trust in the world to do this besides me and yourself?"

"Probably not," she said, echoing his words with a grim amusement. With an almost regretful sigh, she took his arm off her waist and stood up. "Come on, let's get going. We're almost done." Link groaned and heaved himself to his feet before following her out.

* * *

They eventually wound up in the room to the east from the main chamber. The room was a simple round chamber with an ornate chest in the middle. Nothing else. That's how Link knew it was a trap.

He turned around to face Zelda and put his fingers to his lips. She nodded an affirmative and he precded to point at the ceiling. She nodded once more and soundlessly jumped onto the wall then onto the ceiling. She stalked over toward the center of the room very carefully and with senses on high alert.

She looked back at him and slightly shook her head, causing him to frown slightly.

_This isn't right,_ he thought darkly,_ There should be something here._

She dropped down to the chest, and as soon as she did, flames immediately spang up in a circle around her. She just rolled her eyes at that, and opened the chest, revealing the big key.

"Uh, Zel?" Link said, "How are you supposed to get out of there?" She didn't even bother answering as she vanished and reappeared beside him in a cloud of smoke. "Guess that's how," he muttered.

"Let's save the rest of the Gorons and cleanse the temple," Zelda declared, heading toward the door.

"I was kind of hoping for a nap myself, but if you insist," Link said sarcastically under his breath as he followed her out. She loftily ignored him and they made their way up the stairs until they were at the giant door.

"Are you ready?" she asked quietly.

"No," he said, trying to sound serious, and really not doing a good job of it. She muttered something under her breath, and Link just grinned at her.

"Let's go," she commanded shortly, turning the key in the lock.

The next room was big, to say the least. The crater of the volcano seemed like a tiny dot in the ceiling of the chamber, and a lake of living magma boiled under the floor of the room. He could also clearly see the imprisoned Gorons through the bars under his feet. However, no dragon was in sight.

"Where is this thing at?" Link asked in puzzlement, looking in the air.

He decided that the creature must've had a sense of the dramatic, because as soon as he said that, the creature rose up from the magma lake in a wave of fire. It roared in demonic fury and straightened its orange-colored wings, hovering in the air.

"Wow, you're big you know that?" Link asked, impressed despite himself. The creature ignored him and opened its mouth, breathing out a stream of fire. "Whoa, crap!" he shouted as he ducked under his shield.

The fire slammed into his shield and the shield returned the favor, sending the stream of fire right back at its originator. It hit true, and the dragon, roaring in pain, fell to the ground.

Link took advantage of the opportunity and jumped on its back, drawing his sword as he did. The dragon shrieked and rose up again, trying to shake him off. However, Link stubbornly held on, and the dragon soon tired itself out.

"Hasta la vista, asshole," he snarled as he jammed the sword into the skull of the creature, stabbing into its brain. It died instantly and started falling toward the lava. Link quickly took out his Hookshot and aimed it at the bars keeping the Gorons prisoner. He pressed the trigger and immediately felt himself being pulled towards it.

"Oof," he said as he landed on the ground flat on his back. He debated on whether he should get up or not, but decided that it didn't make any difference for what he was about to do.

_Sage of the towering volcano,_ he prayed,_ come and reclaim your place and your temple._

_Arise, Link,_ a gravelly male voice beckoned him.

_Do I have to?_ he mentally groaned,_ This is nice, soft rock._

_As thou wouldst wish it,_ the sage said, amusement filling his voice,_ Thou hadst done well to free me and my sister, and thou will do well to free my other sisters. However, know thee this. Beware of thy shadow, for Ganondorf commanded even nature in his ambitions. I must finish what thou hadst begun in my temple, so I must fare thee well. May thy road always remain smooth. _Link was fairly cetain it was about then that he passed out.

* * *

_Wow, this bed is comfortable_, was the first intelligent thought he had as he gradually regained consciousness. He painfully opened one eye to find his face an inch from Leigh's.

"Daddy?" she whispered.

" 'Sup," he said, opening the other eye, "Leigh, where are we, and how long have I been asleep?"

"We're in the Goron City," she said, unconsciously hugging her teddy bear tightly, "You've been asleep for about eight hours, or at least that's what Zellie said before she went to bed."

"Where is she?" he asked, still sleepy. She pointed behind him.

"There."

Sure enough, as he slowly turned over, Zelda, back in her original form, was lying next to him, her face peacefully reposed in sleep. He blinked and pinched himself, just seeing whether or not he was actually still asleep, which the pain in his arm told him he wasn't.

"Did they not have another bed for her?" he asked Leigh, rubbing his arm.

"Link," Zelda murmured beside him, "Shut up and go back to sleep." Link looked back at Leigh.

"You heard her, kid. Bedtime. Just crawl in between us."

She did, and all three of them faded into the soft embrace of sleep. Near the corner, a figure encased in shadows smiled slightly, unknown to the others.

"Well, ain't that something," it whispered to itself as its red eyes shined in malicious glee. It chuckled silently as it slip back into the shadow it had been spawned from to wait and watch.

**A/N: Okay, hopefully this chapter makes up for the long wait. I'll try and be more on the ball from now on. Make sure to cast your vote on my profile. Oh, by the way, I do not own Legend of Zelda, or Dragonforce. Ain't that something? I thought it was too.**


	14. Chapter 13: Once More Foretelling

**A/N: Oh, man. I didn't realize it had been this long since I last updated. This is going to be a brief chapter, mainly because I'm trying to reintroduce myself to this story, so if it's not quite up to par, I apologize. R&R and let me know what you think.**

Link stared absently into the campfire, idly enjoying the various colors the flames created in their mystical dance, but his mind was troubled by a sense of restlessness and foreboding. He knew it was irrational; so far everything had gone perfectly with no one injured and Ganondorf seemingly unaware of their schemes, but deep within the depths of his heart, he knew it would not, could not, last. Maybe it was the cynic orphan of his past that spoke within his soul and gave him doubts as to the wisdom of his course. What was probably the wise thing would be to go to Ganondorf and join him. At least his survival would be insured.

He grimaced at himself, sickened by the previous thought. He hated the side of himself that had become hard and uncaring during his years just trying to survive on the mean streets of Kakariko. Maybe his past wasn't as behind him as he previously thought.

He tore his gaze from the joyous fire and onto the sleeping form of Zelda. His heart softened immediately as he took her in. During her waking hours, her face maintained a mix of worry, determination, wariness, with occasional bouts of good humor, affection, and general joy. Link much preferred those bouts to the pained expressions her face usually held.

Her lovely heart-shaped face was reposed into a gentle contentment in the shadows cast by the dim firelight, and her body lost the rigid alertness she kept during the day. 

As he watched her sleep, with an growing warmness filling his heart, he came to a realization that he suspected he knew, but had always denied to himself. He loved her. Oh, he had known that he felt affection for her, but he had always thought that after this had past, they would go their separate ways, and go on with their lives. But as he watched this beautiful, gentle woman sleep, he knew that he would never be happy again without her.

"Well, that complicates things a bit," he spoke softly to the forest around him, but, as usual, the trees preferred silence to conversation. But, oddly, despite his words, he did not feel the slightest tinge of regret, and, he realized, that he was ready to die for Zelda if need be.

"This is just a night of revelations, it seems." he whispered amusedly. At about that point, the sky to the west lit up with a flash of lightning, with thunder rolling after its heels. He took that as a sign of agreement from the skies.

"So, Link, do you always talk to yourself when you're alone?" Zelda asked, rising from her place on the leave-covered forest floor, and joining him by the fire, cuddling up to him for warmth.

"Hey, I need at least one intellectual conversation everyday," he teased. She shivered, and he felt that particular gentleness rising up in his heart again, and he put his arm around her and drew her close. She leaned against him gratefully.

"Why, thank you for your chivalrous assistance, good sir," she smiled warmly at him, "But if you need an intellectual conversation, you should talk to Leigh or me. I shudder to think of the 'intellectual' things you talk to yourself about." He mimed a gasp, and put a hand to his heart.

"You hurt me, Princess, you truly did," he said in mock sadness, "I can't go on any longer. You destroyed me. I'm just an empty shell of a man now."

"I'm so sorry, Link. Is there anything I can do to heal your broken spirit?" she asked, rolling her eyes in amusement.

"Well," he said with a slow grin filling his face, "after all this is over, you could bake me some muffins sometime."

She laughed affectionately. "Consider it done."

They sat in companionable silence for a little while, listening to the sound of the approaching thunder, and enjoying the warmth of the fire and each other as the night drew on where it eventually reached its zenith at the midnight hour.

"What woke you up?" Link asked finally. Zelda sat for a moment, contemplating her answer.

"I don't know," she admitted, brushing a strand of golden hair from her face in a way that made his heart ache, " I felt restless. Maybe it's the storm approaching."

"Maybe," Link echoed, somehow intuitively unconvinced of the truth of her statement. He did not press, though, and they lapsed back into silence.

They did not speak for the remainder of the night, and sought the safety of the tent when the storm eventually did come upon them. As Link and Zelda lay staring at the top of the tent, one on either side of the peacefully sleeping Leigh, both felt the same feeling of disquiet, and it did not fade even after the ominous rumbling of the thunder had finally ceased and lightning had disappeared from the night sky.

**A/N: R&R please.**


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